Surviving the Wind
by isakatviv
Summary: In this modern continuation of the greatest love story ever told, follow the Butler family as they once again try to work through severe trials that threaten to tear their family apart once again. This story is AU, with some characters story-lines adjusted to meet the plot of the story.
1. Mrs Grace Hamilton

"Is your brother coming to graduation?"

Ella was accustomed to her friends' obsession with her older brother. Throughout the years, she had endured a sickening amount of comments about how "hot" he was, but it was Grace who seemed to be completely obsessed with him. Ella sometimes wondered if Grace was only her friend in order to have better access to Wade. She had even caught her writing _Mrs. Grace Hamilton_ across her Latin notebook. Grace stood silent; an anxiously waiting for an answer.

Wade, her older brother by five years, was tall, smart, and handsome. The problem wasn't that he was good looking; the problem was that he **_knew_** it. She was certain that he tormented her friends as some sort of sick game. She mentioned (more like screamed) it, over dinner one evening; calling him a man- whore that thrives on making girls follow him around like idiots, only to enjoy crushing their hearts later. Her step father, whom she had always called "Uncle Rhett", began to choke on his recently rationed whisky with raucous laughter. " It's not funny Uncle Rhett. He has some sort of mental issue.", Ella stoically reprimanded him. "I'm sorry sweetheart. I understand completely. I knew a beautiful young girl who acted like that. I feared she had mental insecurities as well.", he said winking at his wife; who in turn only glared back at him.

"Yes, of course he'll be there; as will be my mother, so you'd better abandon all desperate attempts to throw yourself at him.", Ella said smiling. Grace had "accidentally" walked into Wade's room clad only in a towel that barely covered her during a slumber party last June. Trying her very best to be alluring, she had intended to seduce her best friend's gorgeous older brother who was home from college, only to come face to face with his mother. Grace fiercely apologized, insisting that it was an accident.

"I'm so sorry Mrs. Butler! This house is just so huge, I get lost all the time".

Wade's mother smiled and icily replied, "That's perfectly understandable Grace; especially since you have been visiting this house since you were three years old. "

After that humiliating experience, Grace avoided contact with Wade and Ella's mother at all costs.

Grace inhaled deeply. Ella's mother was not physically intimidating, yet bone chillingly frightening. She could be captivating and charming; everyone always commented that she was the most beautiful woman in all of Georgia. She was average height and slender build, with magnolia white skin and jet black hair. She could smile, showing her dimples, and appear as the picture of southern sweetness, yet terrify even the strongest of men with just one look of her green eyes. Grace's mother Cathleen, grew up with Mrs. Butler and had confirmed that she had always had the talent for making people shake in their boots. "It's her eyes honey. They're such a pure green that it's unnerving".

Grace saw those same green eyes in Ella, and wondered what else she had inherited from her mother. Ella was always kind and sweet natured; but could she turn murderous when provoked?

"Do you think your mother is capable of murdering someone? ", Grace asked in general fear for her life should Wade's mother catch her in another compromising position with her oldest child. Ella smirked and couldn't help herself fan the fire of her friend's fear.

"Well, my stepmom said my mom killed a guy who was trying to break into her house when Wade was a baby; and that my Aunt Melly helped her hide the body."

Ella's step mother never had anything good to say about her mother. Her father had, at times, tried to deflect the venom that was hurled toward his ex-wife in the presence of his daughter.

"Now India, let's not talk about this now.", he'd say, nervously running his hands through his red hair.

"No Frank!", she'd yell," That woman is awful! Didn't you see the way she barged into the store and DEMANDED her child support?! She should be paying US! That low life she's married to is a BILLIONAIRE! How you were ever married to her Frank, I can't understand!".

Frank and Scarlett agreed at their divorce mediation that they would never disclose to anyone that it was only because of an unintended pregnancy, that had resulted in Ella, that they had even decided to get married.

Scarlett had tried to paint a rosy picture for Ella when she was little. She was told time and again that her father was engaged first to her Aunt Sue; but despite that commitment, her parents fell so deeply in love with each other that they could no longer ignore their feelings and decided to elope. She found out the truth years later during a heated argument between her parents.

 _"Are you serious? You're actually standing here asking me to agree to LOWER child support payments?". Scarlett asked in sheer bewilderment; the fact that he would even ask for this enraged her._

 _She could actually feel her blood pressure rising. So much for Dr. Meade's instructions to not get too worked up._

 _"Be reasonable Scarlett. Do you really need that much each month? Look around you; you live in a damn palace! ". Frank had never been bold enough to combat his ex-wife. Scarlett called the shots; as she had always done in every aspect of their life together._

 _"So, because my husband is well off; OUR child, YOUR daughter, has to suffer? Is it his responsibility to pay her tuition; which is by the way, the only thing your piss poor amount can cover!?". Her face was hot from the blood rushing to her cheeks._

 _"You should thank God that I even agreed to that pitiful amount! You make me sick, you know that? Why don't you just sign over your parental rights to Rhett; he's a better father to her anyway!". That wasn't true; Frank adored his little girl. Scarlett, largely pregnant with her third child, was only interested in hurting Frank, not the actual truth._

 _"That's not fair Scarlett; you know how much I love Ella! "; he was now yelling as well. Saying he was a bad father was hitting below the belt._

 _Ella, who was sitting in the front parlor, knew her father was in her mother's office and was straining to hear their conversation while appearing to ignore the loud confrontation by pretended to be engrossed in playing with her Monster high dolls._

 _Her mother had not been a good mood at all today. In fact, she had been in a terrible mood for weeks; ever since she was bared by her husband and doctor from going to work. It was either she stays home, or go on complete bed rest until her due date, eight weeks from now. Her father was taking his own life in his hands by going in there to talk to her at all, much less fight with her._

 _Frank felt a surge of confidence and began hurling insults himself "Do you think I would have put myself through the misery of being married to you if not for her !?" Frank's face was becoming as red as his hair. He moved toward the woman who had been the destruction of his life for almost seven years._

 _Scarlett clenched her fists, turning her knuckles white. "MISERY?! You were miserable?! I couldn't even STAND you! Our marriage was the WORST decision that I've ever made in my LIFE!"._

 _Scarlett's raised voice must have alerted her husband, as he darted down the stairs in such a hurried fashion that he didn't even give notice to Ella._

 _"YOU were the one who said we NEEDED to get married!", Frank loudly reminded her._

 _"And you know why I did that! Do you really think I wanted to marry my sister's dirty old man fiancé? ". Scarlett braced herself on the edge of her desk. She was beginning to feel lightheaded._

 _Rhett burst into the room leaving the huge mahogany doors wide open; giving Ella the opportunity to better hear the conversation._

 _"Scarlett, calm down. Do you want to have this baby six weeks early ?!" From the moment, he learned that he would become a father, he treated his wife as if she were made of glass._

 _"THIS piece of garbage ", Scarlett pointed at her ex-husband with a shaky hand; "wants me to agree to LOWER his child support payments!"_

 _Rhett could see that this was no time to try to reason with his wife. His focus was only on his child, and her need to remain in her mother's womb for at least four more weeks._

 _"Frank, if you want to discuss the payments, have your lawyer contact Henry and we will get it sorted out. Really, what kind of person brings some this sensitive up to a woman who is eight months pregnant?" Rhett's calm yet serious demeanor was enough to cause Frank to leave the Butler home conceding defeat._

 _No one seemed to notice the figure of a little girl with tears in her eyes, cowering in the corner of the parlor; convinced that it was she who was the cause of her parent's terrible marriage and years of unhappiness._

Grace stood in stupefied silence at the revelation the Mrs. Butler was indeed a possible murderer. "Don't worry Grace" Ella comforted her friend. "If my mom has restrained herself from murdering my Aunt Sue for all these years, I'm pretty sure you're safe."

"Text me later. I have to go. My grandma's picking me up today and she hates it when I'm not waiting out there for her. See you Saturday".


	2. Mommy called Mammy

_**Disclaimer : I own nothing...wish I did though ;)**_

Ella noticed her grandmother's silver Honda Civic almost immediately. She had adamantly refused her mother's attempts to purchase her a luxury sedan, even refusing to get out of the car when her mother brother her to the Infinity dealership.

Ella didn't drive. She had failed her driving test three times since turning sixteen. She had trouble focusing while driving, always getting distracted with her surroundings rather than paying attention to the road.

"I hope she didn't have to wait long or I'll hear about it the whole way home.", she thought.

She climbed into the car and noticed that her Mammy was not wearing her glasses. She decided not to remind her that she needed to wear them all the time now.

Two years ago, her grandmother had a stroke leaving her with such poor eyesight that she now required bifocals. Her mother was paranoid about leaving her grandmother alone should something like that happen again and decided with her sisters that she needed to live with someone. The three women staged an intervention of sorts to present their plan to their mother. After hours filled with tears and frustrated arguments, Mammy reluctantly agreed to move in to her eldest daughter's home. She certainly had enough room and despite her love for her middle daughter, knew she could not endure living in the same house with her.

"Hi Mammy, she said as she leaned over to give her grandmother a kiss on the cheek." Did you have to wait long?".

"Long enough.", she replied with a smile.

Ella loved when Mammy picked her up from school. Of course, she would whine and complain that she was the only senior that had her grandma pick her up from school; but secretly she looked forward to it. There was such a feeling of peace and love when she was with her.

Mammy wasn't Ella's biological grandmother. That was quite evident at first glance.

As a little girl, Ella didn't understand the differences between herself and mammy. It was only when her mother discovered that she had colored herself almost entirely in brown paint in an attempt to give herself Mammy's lovely skin tone, that she learned about the differences in ethnicities; and that her mammy was African American and she was Caucasian.

Her biological grandmother, Ellen, died when her mother was a little girl. There was a large portrait of her in their home along with several snapshots of her grandmother with her mother and aunts as babies. From the stories her mother told, she learned that her grandmother was kind and loving to everyone, always thinking of others rather than herself. Ella was even named after her. She was very pretty and seemed nice, but it was ever only Mammy that she considered as her grandmother.

She died when her mother was only nine, after contracting bacterial meningitis. No one knew exactly how she became infected; although Scarlett most viciously accused the Slatery family who were always on the receiving end of her mother's charity and good will as the cause of her mother's death. Even today she would only refer to Emmy Slatery as the "white trash who killed her mother ". Ellen's sickness and death were so sudden, that Ella's grandfather lost touch with a part of reality; sometimes even asking for her as if she were still alive and calling out her name at night. When he wasn't searching for his dead wife, he was drinking himself into a drunken stupor, often not even coming home at night.

It was only because of Ruth, her grandmother's best friend and her mother's godmother, that the three little O' Hara girls survived. Scarlett being the oldest had tried to care for her younger sisters, but being only nine herself, was unable to handle her annoying seven-year-old sister Suellen and baby sister Careen.

Ruth saw that their father was slipping into an abyss that she feared he would never escape, and moved herself into the family home. In an instant she, a woman of Haitian decent, became the mother of three little Irish girls.

Careen, barely two years old, began calling Ruth mommy. Ruth didn't pay much attention to it at first; she was the only mother the toddler had ever really known. Soon, the older two began doing it as well. Ruth never corrected them. She knew Ellen would be pleased that her daughters had someone loving in their lives that they regarded as a mother.

But when the four of them went out in public, the people looking in wonder at how an African American woman could have such white children; made her nervous. She then began instructing the girls to call her Mammy instead. It was close enough to mommy, but different enough to distinguish her as someone who was not their biological mother. The name stuck; and Ruth McDaniel became Mammy to her little girls and subsequently their children.

"Is Wade home?", Ella questioned while adjusting her seat belt.

"Yes; and he done brought **_that girl_** too. "


	3. THAT girl

Despite Scarlett's desperate pleadings and covert manipulation tactics, Wade had decided to follow in the footsteps of his father, uncle, and grandfather and study law at Harvard.

She feared her son would be lost in a sea of liberal Yankees who would take delight in destroying his tender southern soul. Wade was special to her. Of all her children, Wade knew just how awful she was and could be as a mother.

He was born to a mother who was a child herself; not understanding how to care for herself, let alone an infant. He watched as she worried over bills and household accounts; rubbing her temples as she tried to somehow find the money to keep the lights and water on. He saw her marry a man she couldn't stand and the terrible two years that followed. He was there when she had to place her own father, suffering the effects of dementia, in a nursing home; watching with wide eyes as he begged her, thinking she was his dead wife, not to leave him there. He witnessed the full trauma of the first ten years of the Butler marriage, as well as the verbal and sometimes physical fights that would go on between the couple. He saw her lifeless body, blood coming out of her mouth, as she lay unconscious after tumbling down a flight of stairs. He was the one who found her passed out drunk, her hair and face lying in vomit and confronted her about her drinking problem. He was the one would wake her up in the middle of the night as she screamed in terror from nightmares, assuring her that things were alright. And yet, he still loved and protected her.

Even now, Wade "checked on "his mother daily with texts and e mails.

 _Hi mom, r u home yet?_

 _Yes Wade_

 _Are you going out l8tr?_

 _I was thinking about wandering_

 _around the bars in Atlanta_

 _with a hot date I found on Tinder._

 _MOM!_ _L_

Scarlett's fears seemed to be for naught until she learned, through her nephew, that her son was infatuated with a girl he had met at school. Wade was vague about the details of his new "friend"; only sharing with his mother that her name was Aimee and she was from New York. That alone was enough to terrify her.

Since then, his mother had visualized Aimee as being everything from a gold digger to a black-market dealer in human body parts. What she didn't know was that the relationship was much more serious than her son would let on.

Three weeks ago, he had asked Aimee to marry him. And so, he saw that the occasion of his little sister's high school graduation, where many people would be present and hopefully preventing his mother from flying into a homicidal rage, would be the perfect time to introduce his brand-new fiancé to the family.

Aimee Waters paced nervously along the long hallway that connected the library to the formal parlor. Never in her life had she seen something so ostentatious as this house. It was if the furniture and décor were selected only because they were expensive with little regard to their actual applicability to the architecture and style of the home. Wade's family was obviously wealthy; but the way the house was decorated with garish and outlandish items that were haphazardly placed, told her that they may not have always be so prosperous.

Wade had told her very little about his family. She only knew that his mother was very young when he was born and he had never met his father.

She was not prepared for the full impact of his family.

The first person she met was his grandmother. She was slightly taken aback by the large African American woman engulfing her fiancé in an embrace. Wade never mentioned being bi-racial.

She wasn't quite sure that Wade's grandmother liked her very much. She could _feel_ the old woman glaring at her.

She was then introduced to Wade's stepfather. He was older, maybe in his late fifties to early sixties, and reminded her of a portrait she had seem of the pirate Jean Lafitte in her art history textbook, with his clipped mustache and black eyes. She would place him in the same category as Sean Connery and Timothy Dalton; the older but still criminally handsome, distinguished gentlemen. He was kind and very polite, asking her questions about her interests and what she planned to do after graduation. His swarthy demeanor left her with no questions on how he had managed to win the heart of a wife who was almost twenty years his junior.

She was enjoying her conversation about the similarities in the styles of Monet and Cassatt with her father in law to be, when the voice of a young girl could be heard in the hall.

"Wade!", Ella rushed in and greeted her brother with a hug so genuine that it caused her eyes to mist over with tears. "I've missed you so much", she said still clinging to her older brother.

"I haven't been gone that long! ", he teased as he playfully ruffled her red curls.

Pulling away from her, he moved toward the strange girl standing next to their stepfather. "Ella, this is my girlfriend Aimee. Aimee, this red headed terror is my sister Ella".

Ella extended her hand to greet the girl who had captivated her usually somber brother. Noticing her woolen jacket and long pants, highly impractical in the sweltering June heat, she asked if this was her first time visiting the south.

"It's so nice to meet you", Aimee replied in a strong New York accent. "Your father has been telling me a little about Georgia, so I'm not totally ignorant about the south", she answered with a slight smile.

"Oh, he's my stepfather too ", Ella corrected, grabbing her brother's arm. She was sure that Wade had informed her that Rhett was not his biological father. There was still a lingering feeling of resentment and distrust in Wade when it came to him.

"Ella's father was lucky enough to be the first Mr. Scarlett O'Hara ", Wade said playfully pushing his younger sister.

"I thought that your father claimed that title." Aimee was confused, as many were, when faced with the paternity of Scarlett's children.

"No, my father and mother were never married. "

Wade had always acted as though he didn't care that he was stigmatized with the label of illegitimate, but Ella knew better. She could always read her brother like a book; and she knew that it did indeed hurt him more than he let on.

It wasn't that his father didn't want to marry his mother, he just didn't have the chance.

 _"Time to get up Scarlett ", her sister Suellen yelled into her room; "You don't want to miss seeing the love of your life marry someone else, do you?"_

 _"Tell me Scarlett, does it make you angrier knowing Ashley is marrying someone else, or that he's marrying someone who is the complete opposite of you? "_

 _Scarlett was dreading today. Ashley, the man she thought hung the moon, was getting married today to a pale faced, mealy-mouthed, ninny named Melanie Hamilton. Melanie couldn't have been any sweeter to Scarlett; always complimenting her clothes and make up. "Oh Scarlett, I wish I could be more like you! ", she would exclaim whenever Scarlett would say something witty or funny._

 _It didn't matter what Melanie said or did, Scarlett still hated her. Ashley loved her; not this prim and proper waif of a woman, who couldn't even form a thought of her own._

 _"Suellen, I swear if you don't get your ass out of here, I'm going to beat the shit out of you until you're so ugly even that geriatric loser you like doesn't even want you!"_

 _"Mammy! Scarlett's cussing at me!" Suellen shouted down the stairs to her mother who busy getting herself ready._

 _"Don't make me come up there you two! "she cried. "Careen baby, run up there and see what's going on."_

 _Dutifully, Careen did as she was told. This was routine; Careen having to break up at cat fight between her two older sisters._

 _Careen entered just at the right moment. Scarlett had Suellen pinned to the ground, a fistful of her auburn hair in her grasp._

 _"Mammy said to quit being ugly and get dressed.", she reported._

 _The wedding itself was awful. Melanie had no taste according to Scarlett. Her dress was plain and did nothing for child-like figure. There were barely any flowers in the church, just a few decorations in the reception hall , and their first kiss as man and wife was so pitiful, it convinced her that Ashley was still in love with_ _ **her**_ _even though he was now married to another woman._

 _But the look on his face when he danced with his new wife, turned her stomach sour._

 _"That should be me", she thought while watching his expressions. "He loves me, he loves ME; she kept repeating to herself._

 _When Ashley bent his head down to kiss his bride in the middle of Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight ", the truth of the matter was blatantly clear. Melanie had won; Ashley was hers._

 _She sought comfort amidst the throngs of admiring boys; all fighting for a chance to dance with her._

 _"Cade", she said sweetly," Please get me something to drink." She couldn't stay sober. She didn't care what Mammy would say or what people would think. Tonight, she was going to get completely drunk._

 _Cade, like all the other boys in Clayton county, was infatuated with the raven-haired beauty that was Scarlett O' Hara, and considered himself lucky to be chosen as the one to deliver this gorgeous creature a refreshing beverage. He returned in haste, presenting Scarlett with a diet Coke._

 _"Are you fucking serious?! ", she seethed at him; knocking the drink out of his hand as she rushed past him out onto the patio._

 _"Are you okay miss? "she heard from behind._

 _"I hope I don't offend you, but you don't look well."_

 _"I'm fine", she said; her voice cracking with unshed tears._

 _"Can I get you anything? "She wished he would leave her alone. She wanted to wallow in her own self-pity and fantasize about Melanie tripping and falling into her tasteless cake._

 _It was at that moment that she could no longer contain her emotions, and sobbed._

 _He was at her side in an instant; begging her not to cry. She wasn't sure how what happened next came about, but she soon found herself lying underneath him as he took her virginity behind the gazebo in the south garden._

 _This intimate rendezvous was the first of many she shared with the boy she learned was Charles Hamilton, Melanie's older brother. He made her feel beautiful and desired. She didn't care about the future or the consequences that these intimate moments could bring; in her tender moments with Charles, all her cares melted away._

 _He soon had to leave Atlanta to begin the Spring semester at Harvard; leaving Scarlett with more than a kiss to remember him by._

 _Six weeks later in the lime green bathroom she shared with her sisters, she held in her hands three different pregnancy tests; all of which read positive._

 _He didn't get upset when she told him; rather he promised to marry her as soon as she turned eighteen._

 _A few months later, Melanie was at her front door, crying as she told Scarlett the news that Charles had died; leaving her alone and pregnant at seventeen._

"Don't mind me, Ella.", Rhett said smiling at his stepdaughter.

Ella smiled back at him with the same green eyes he saw in her mother. "I'm sorry, Uncle Rhett", she laughed as she kissed him on the cheek.

"How was your last day of high school? "

"It was okay. Just another day really."

She noticed that he was holding a tumbler filled with an amber colored liquid, and looking down at the drink , she looked back at her stepfather. Their eyes met in an unspoken understanding.

"Don't tell your mother", was his response. After his last cholesterol check, and their subsequent results, he was limited to one glass of whisky a day.

She gave him a smile letting him know that his secret would be safe with her.

Suddenly, they heard a loud crash, so intense, that the crystals on the massive chandelier above them swayed in movement.

"Somebody save me! I've been held captive all day under the rule of a malignant tyrant!", came a voice.

Wade laughed as he shook his head. "Typical dramatics", he thought.

"Wade! I didn't know you were coming today!", she said as she clapped her hands together in excitement.

Wade gestured for Aimee to come and meet this new family member.

"Aimee, this drama queen, is my sister Bonnie ".


	4. Who's your daddy ?

_Thank you all for the kind reviews! I started this as a type of therapy, and it is really helping. You are all awesome. I am incorporating all the books and movies in this, and try to keep the story flowing in a comprehendible direction_ _J_

Bonnie looked at this strange woman in her home. "So, you're the gold digging, kidney stealer".

"Excuse me?", Aimee was sure that there was some double meaning behind this odd statement.

Wade had not shared his mother's asinine concerns about Aimee, and she was dumbfounded at why Wade's sister had called her an organ thief.

In sulked another girl; this one looking about nine or ten, with the same black hair as Bonnie. Aimee saw little resemblance in any of the siblings. Wade was tall and muscular , with big brown eyes and wavy brown hair that always seemed to have a hair or two out of place. Ella's hair was a deep auburn color, tightly coiled in curls that framed her pale face, making her dark green eyes stand out. Bonnie was shorter than Ella, with jet black hair in loose curls. Her skin was pale like Ella's, but seemed more porcelain than pasty white. Her eyes were crystal blue and outlined with eyelashes so thick, that for a second, Aimee thought they were fake. The youngest girl , whose name she did not yet know, appeared to be tall for her age. Her hair was as dark as her sisters, but fell straight across her shoulders, and skin that was the same bronze color as Wade's stepfather. "She must be his biological daughter ", she thought ;as this girl looked exactly like him.

"How many sisters does he have?", she thought as she watched the girl flop down in the wing backed chair near the door.

"What'd you do to Cat?", Wade asked his sister who wore a mischievous grin. He knew that if something was upsetting his littlest sister, Bonnie had to have had something to do with it.

"Why Wade," she said raising her right eyebrow," how can you imply that I would torment our dear baby sister? She's public enemy number one old now. She told sister Mary Francis to go Fuck herself." Bonnie really was the spitting image of his mother, with her eye color being the only difference.

"That's not true Bonnie! Why are you such a giant jerk ?!", came the voice hidden behind the chair.

"Stop yelling! I have had about enough out of both of you!"

The mystique that was Wade's mother was revealed.

Aimee was not at all prepared for this. She thought it wouldn't be too awkward meeting the other woman in Wade's life. She expected a few uncomfortable moments in the beginning, but nothing more. She silently berated herself for standing in stupefied silence as her future mother in law came before her, giving her a quick smile and kissing Wade on the cheek.

She was stunning; truly breathtakingly beautiful. She was exactly what Aimee imagined Snow White would look like.

Aimee guessed she was in her mid to late thirties, but was unsure because she could not detect any wrinkles on her face; only a few freckles that danced across her nose. Her curly hair was so black, it looked blue when the light hit it, and was pulled back in a low ponytail, with only a few loose tendrils escaping the hair tie. Her eyes were the color of pure emeralds when light would shine through them. It was obvious she wore make-up; maybe even a bit too much, but it was applied with the preciseness of a masterpiece; with the black cat eye and full red lips standing out against her lily-white completion. "Bonnie definitely looks like her mother ", Aimee thought to herself.

"Welcome home sweetheart. Give me a second and let me put him down. He fell asleep in the car.", she said as she shuffled the little boy in her arms.

Hearing the raised voices, Rhett appeared in the doorway.

"I thought I heard you.", he said with a smile as he walked over to his wife who was desperately trying to carry his four-year-old son along with his backpack and lunchbox. He was draped across her right shoulder, his mouth hanging open, and a handful of his mother's hair tangled up in his small fingers.

"This woman", he thought to himself. After almost seventeen years of marriage, he still saw her as the beautiful eighteen-year-old girl that he met at a bar-b-que twenty-two years ago. "You had your hands full today, didn't you my pet?"

"Please take him ", she said as she handed off the sleeping pre- schooler to her husband while leaning in for a quick kiss. Rhett laid his son down on the plush sofa across from his sulking ten-year-old. Cat refused to look at her father and instead stared at the wall.

"What happened now", he sighed. His two daughters were truly turning out to be a handful.

"Well," began his wife. "Miss Catherine over there told her religion teacher that she was an ignorant fool who was promoting an archaic cult by becoming a nun , and that Catholicism did nothing more than objectify women and steal money from millions of brainwashed people. She then refused to apologize, and told the PRINCIPAL the same thing! She's been suspended for three days! THREE DAYS !".

This was his fault and he knew it. Cat listened intently to everything her father said. She obviously overheard him voice the exact same statement. Rhett was about to open his mouth to speak of his involvement when his wife continued.

"Then, this one "she continued as she pointed towards Bonnie," FAILED her Spanish test after telling me over and over again that she had studied for it. "

"It's just Spanish, mom. You act as if it were the end of the world. "replied Bonne as she rolled her eyes at the absurdity of it all. She saw school as a waste of time anyway. Her parents weren't shining examples of academic vigor either. Her father was kicked out of West Point and her mother graduated high school when she was seven months pregnant with her brother. Yet they were both successful and very, very rich without the aid of huge academic achievements. She, along with her siblings would inherit millions one day, and as the eldest of the three Butler children, Bonnie had long ago decided that it would be she who would take over the role of president and CEO of Butler enterprises, the financing firm owned by her father. She didn't need to learn Spanish. If she needed to communicate with someone who spoke a different language, she would HIRE someone ELSE to do it. What was the point of taking school so seriously?

"Eugenie Victoria! It's a credit course! If you fail it, it throws your entire graduation plan off. And if you roll your eyes at me again young lady, you will be grounded for the entire summer and not just the week!"

Scarlett seethed in frustration. She had never had these types of problems with Wade and Ella, leaving her to determine that it was Rhett's genetics that caused this rebellion in her two younger daughters.

Bonnie murmured a quiet, "yes Ma'am ". She knew that when her mother used her full given name, she meant business. It was always Bonnie, Cat, Wade, and Ella. But when it was Eugenie Victoria, Catherine Colum, Gerald Samuel, Wade Hampton, and Ella Lorena, she was not to be defied. Only Bonnie had ever been brave enough to even try, and after her subsequent prolonged punishment, it was never attempted again.

Scarlett exhaled loudly and silently said a prayer that her son would not grow to follow in his sisters' footsteps.

"And what about Gerry? How'd he do today?", Rhett questioned as he nodded towards his son who now curled up in a ball and sucking his thumb.

"He cried almost all day again ", replied his wife.

"And you went and got him". Rhett knew his wife was going to continue to do this. As soon as Gerry started calling for his Mommy, she would be there in an instant, taking him home with her. Somehow, she had manipulated his teachers in to informing her the moment he asked for her.

Gerry needed to be in school, he needed the interaction. Since his first breath, he had been engulfed in a cocoon created by his mother and grandmother. He clung to his mother all the time, always being carried on her hip, always needing to curl her black hair around his finger when he was sleepy or upset. Rhett didn't know who cried more the day they left their son at pre- school for the first time, Gerry or Scarlett.

"He's not ready, Rhett. You're forcing him to go when he should still be at home." Even though Scarlett worked a full eight hours each day, she worked from home when she could, and came home from lunch to be with her little prince when she couldn't. She made sure his nanny called her throughout the day to keep her updated on every detail, even his bathroom regularities, and had the live video feed from the nanny cam that she INSISTED Rhett install, constantly opened on her Mac and i phone when she was at work.

Rhett knew it was his wife who was not ready. Gerald was special to her. He often wondered if she saw him as some sort of second chance after what had happened to their other son, whose tiny footprints were enshrined on her bedside table. Even now, so long after the accident, he would find her sometimes lying in their bed asleep, her face stained with tears, clutching the tiny blanket they swaddled him with in the NICU.

Instead of arguing with his wife, he gently took her hand in his; giving it a gentle squeeze while whispering, "I know". Scarlett smiled at him, her eyes beginning to mist over with tears.

"But my day is going to be much better now that Wade is home ", she said as composed herself and went to give her oldest son a proper hug.

"Hi, mama ", Wade said as he clung to his mother. Rhett smiled, thinking to himself that even at twenty-two, Wade still embraced his mother in the same way as his four-year brother.

Wade pulled back from the embrace, still holding his mother's right hand, and used the left one to pull Aimee toward them. "Mom, this is my girlfriend, Aimee ".

The room was silent as everyone waited with baited breath, cautiously awaiting the response from Scarlett.

"Hello Aimee, it's a pleasure to meet you", she said showing her dimples with her smile.

The entire room sighed collectively in relief.


	5. The beauty of being unique

Here's a long one ! Let me know what you think ! Thanks for being wonderful ...Isa

"So, Aimee, what's your major?", Bonnie asked trying to deflect her parent's attention off her declining GPA. All throughout dinner, her parents continued to admonish her for her lack of responsibility in school.

"Art history ", Aimee replied in between bites. She knew it was rude to speak with her mouth full of food, but she had never in life, tasted food this good. She gluttonously piled the fried okra onto her plate, ignoring the sideways glances Wade's grandmother was throwing in her direction.

"You betta' eat all that " , Mammy said in a voice filled with disdain. " You can always tell a lady by the way she eats 'round folks like a bird. "

"You can always tell a lady by the way she eats 'round folks like a bird. Guess you 'aint a lady" she mumbled to herself.

Ella, seated next to her grandmother, heard this retort , and gave her a nudge with her knee under the table.

"That's a dumb major", interjected Cat. "Why didn't you choose something more useful? You should change it to something else."

Scarlett inhaled deeply. This day had taken a toll on her. It began with Ella begging her to let her drive her car to school this morning, following her around her bedroom as she tried to get dressed for work.

 _"Mom, please !" Ella mimicked her mother's every move as she continued her plea._

 _"No Ella you are not driving my Bentley, you only have a permit. You need a licensed driver in the car with you at all times"_

 _"Dad lets me! Why don't you trust me?"_

 _"Your father lets you drive by yourself!? I swear, his stupidity continues to amaze me."_

 _She shook her head in disbelief as she continued to search for her stockings in the pile of clothes laying underneath General Forest, their giant St. Bernard , who was slobbering all over her new Louboutins ._

 _"Ella, I don't care what that idiot does, go get dressed for school. I can't deal with this right now."_

 _"Good morning Uncle Rhett" she solemnly said to her stepfather as she exited from her mother's bedroom._

 _"Forest, move your big ass! "she declared as she tried to shove the massive animal off her clothes. " Rhett , call him !"_

 _Finally, the animal moved, revealing her rumpled stockings._

 _As she fastened the straps on her garter, she felt the strong arms of her husband encircle her waist. She leant her head back on his chest, savoring the waves of comfort she only felt when in his embrace." Tell me it's going to be a good day, please."_

 _"It could be a good morning." He lustfully said as he kissed her neck._

 _"You're out of luck on that one. Besides, Gerry is in the bed"_

 _"How fortunate it is for us to be in the bathroom then." His hands moved up from her waist to other, more sensuous areas._

 _"No Rhett, I have too much to do today", she smiled as she playfully batted his hand away._

 _"Would it work if I cried and threw a fit like Gerry?"_

 _They both laughed knowing that the four-year-old had his mother tightly wrapped around his little finger._

 _"I love you, you stupid man ", she said turning to kissing him. "Maybe tonight…. If you're a good boy."_

Her day continued to fall to pieces later that morning as she left her sobbing little boy at school, driving away as he yelled out for her.

She cried all the way to work.

She was then called out of her meeting with the reps from Home Depot by her children's school, informing her that Cat was in trouble yet again, and was now suspended, needing to be picked up immediately; forcing her to leave the mill's biggest client in the incompetent hands of Ashley.

Returning to work, this time with Cat in tow, she logged into her parent portal for the school to check on Bonnie and Ella's grades for the end of the year , and discovered that Bonnie had failed the Spanish test she had said she was prepared for, and was now failing the class.

She then received a text from her sister saying that she and her family would be coming in for Ella's graduation this weekend; something Scarlett dreaded as her sister , once the finance of Ella's father, caused every situation where the three of them gathered together to become very uncomfortable.

The text was followed by a phone call from her husband saying that Gerry must start sleeping in his own bed and not between them any longer, and if he wasn't intimate with his wife more than once a week , he would soon be forced to visit Belle.

Astonished that he would even mention that whore's name to her, she declared, "Fuck you Rhett! Go to that fat cow, you piece of shit."

Before her husband could explain that it was a bad joke, she pulled out the big guns .

"It's quite alright with me", she continued. "As I will seek solace in Ashley. I wonder if he will like the black lace panties I'm wearing?" and promptly hung up on him.

She refused to answer his repeated calls and texts, choosing not to fuel the conversation. They certainly still knew how to hurt each other, a fact made painfully clear in situations like these.

Cat, wearing her headphones, was protected from overhearing this exchange between her parents.

An hour later Hugh entered her office telling her that a bouquet of roses had just been delivered for her.

Adding to her stress was the fact that Wade was bringing this girl home to meet the family. She prayed to God that this wasn't serious and that Wade was sensible enough not to do something stupid like run off and marry her…. or get her pregnant.

Hugh then delivered a message from the pre - school saying that Gerry was inconsolable and crying for her.

She knew she wasn't going to get anymore work done today.

Grabbing her purse, briefcase, and the huge pile of paperwork she was supposed to finish today, she informed Hugh that she was leaving for the day.

Cat's comment was just the straw that broke the camel's back.

"Catherine, Enough! "Scarlett said as she slammed her hand on the table.

The room fell silent at the sound, all eyes fixated on her.

Soon a small humming sound began to envelop the room. Everyone except Aimee understood what that meant. It was Cat. The humming always calmed her when she became overstimulated, scared, or upset.

The sound grew larger as Cat began rocking back and forth; another calming technique she used.

"Cat, you okay?", Wade softly asked his sister. "Please don't do this now " he thought , looking over to see if Aimee had noticed.

She only rocked harder, hummed louder.

Scarlett hated herself for causing this. Yes, she was frustrated and tired, but it was no excuse to lash out at Cat. She knew Cat didn't see telling the honest truth as something that could be hurtful. She was very intelligent, she could solve math equations that even her college aged brother had difficulty with, but was completely oblivious to social ques or social politeness.

She had an expansive memory as well, remembering even the smallest details about a subject or person; sometimes using that vast memory to place her parents in uncomfortable situations, as she did not know when to keep information to herself.

Scarlett would never forget the time she was happily chatting with an acquaintance, only to have Cat blatantly interject, "Mama, isn't this the lady you said gained a lot of weight in the past two years?

People in general were confusing to Cat; their jokes and comments never made any sense. This was exactly why she was always in trouble at school; and something Scarlett certainly would be addressing with the head of school on Monday morning.

Scarlett wanted out of the school anyway. It was, and had never been , a good fit for her. She was isolated and ostracized for being different.

She sobbed for hours in the privacy of her bedroom after she learned from Bonnie that Cat was always alone at school, and had no friends.

Ever since pre-school she had a hard time making friends. The other children laughed at her odd behavior, calling her weird and crazy, upsetting Scarlett much more than Cat. She got on her knees to thank God when Cat started mentioning a friend at school named Sam.

 _"Did you have fun at school today, Kitty Cat?" Scarlett asked her daughter, desperately hoping that she interacted with another child today._

 _"Yes. I played with Sam. Not little Sam, but big Sam. "_

 _"Big Sam?"_

 _"Yes, there are two Sams, little Sam and Big Sam. It's not that difficult to understand, mom "_

 _"I'm sorry honey, it makes perfect sense"_

Scarlett glanced over at her daughter and remembered that Aimee was witnessing everything. "Oh well" , she thought, " this is us , take it or leave it."

She knew she could calm Cat down if she could get her to a place she felt safe, like her bedroom, painted a pale purple and filled with soft lights and butterflies. It was getting her there that would prove to be the problem.

Then she saw Gerry. He was covered in red gravy, leaving spaghetti and sauce stains on her expensive tablecloth; and realized that he was the perfect excuse to lead Cat out of the dining room.

"Gerry, let's go wash your hands.", Scarlett instructed the little boy who was having trouble eating his "pasgetti".

"Cat, can you come help me get him cleaned up? ", she asked as she rose from her chair.

Cat paid her mother no attention, continuing to rock and hum.

"Cat", Scarlett calmly repeated, moving slowly toward her daughter.

"Cat", she said once again, this time reaching out to gently touch her child.

"Don't touch me! ", Cat screamed as she rocked even harder, pulling up her hands to cover her ears, and began humming so loudly that her little brother became frightened, climbing into his father's lap for safety.

Everyone else continued to eat their dinner, acting as nothing were amiss. "This was something that must happen often", thought Aimee.

She knew she was being completely rude, but she couldn't help but stare wide-eyed at what was happening at the dinner table.

"Cat", Scarlett softly said as she once again moved toward her. "Cat, I'm sorry I got upset. I didn't mean to yell."

Cat still said nothing; continuing her rocking and humming.

Scarlett slowly took her hand and began to lightly rub circles on her daughter's arm with her fingertips. It was something she discovered calmed her down. Cat did not like to be touched, especially when overstimulated or upset, but feather light touches from her mother were accepted.

Cat lowered her hands from over her ears; the rocking slowly subsiding and the humming sound beginning to leave the room.

Scarlett took a deep breath, as she once again addressed her daughter. She hated to do this in front of Wade's girlfriend, but she had no choice.

"Cat, I'm sorry. I know you had a rough day at school, and all the excitement going on these past few days has really been hard for you. I made a mistake, I shouldn't have raised my voice or hit the table. I'm so sorry sweetheart"

Cat turned her head toward her mother, looking at her directly in the eyes, with a sense of understanding passing between mother and daughter.

"Shake hands? ", Cat said as she offered her small hand to her mother.

Hugs were out of the question. Shaking hands was Cat's preferred method to show affection.

It took every ounce of control that Scarlett had not to grab tightly to her little girl, embracing her tightly in hug and engulfing her in a blanket of protection; shielding her from a cruel world filled with ignorant people who only laughed and made fun of her.

Scarlett's eyes filled with tears as she looked at her baby girl. She was so innocent and didn't deserve this.

"I love you so much Kitty Cat, you know that?", she said still holding her hand.

"Yes", was Cat's simple, matter of fact answer. "I love you too".

She didn't say it back to her mother with any of the tender emotion or the smiles and hugs she received from her other children, but Scarlett knew it to be true.

She let go of her little hand, her eyes releasing the huge pools of tears as she turned away from Cat, facing her husband and son.

Dinner continued without further incidents.

Cat and Gerry were soon ushered off for baths and bed, giving Scarlett a chance to address what had happened.

"I'm sorry about that Aimee. Sometimes, Cat gets a little overstimulated and becomes upset."

"She's autistic ", Bonnie loudly whispered in Aimee's direction.

"Dammit Bonnie!", she seethed through clenched teeth at her look-alike daughter" I don't ever want to hear you talk about your sister like she's some sort of family secret again! "

"It was just a joke, mom! Geez!"

Like her father, Bonnie had the tendency to not take anything seriously.

"Do NOT cross me on this Eugenie! And don't think I won't come over there and slap that sass right out of your mouth! "

"Scarlett, calm down", Rhett didn't want Aimee to be to exposed to the full craziness that is the Butlers on the first day.

Outwardly, Bonnie appeared to be happy and jovial, always laughing and trying find the fun in any situation. She had a charm about her that would turn even the hardest of hearts soft. Even Mrs. Merriweather, the town grump, gushed about the little sweetheart that was Bonnie Butler.

But inwardly, Bonnie felt left out, especially by her mother.

Wade, being the oldest, had a bond with their mother unlike the rest of them, even seeming more like her friend and confidant rather than her son, Ella was the good girl, always following the rules and never making a fuss; she also thought her mother hung the moon, always admonishing Bonnie when she would say something negative about their mother, Cat was special and needed extra attention, and Gerry was coddled and treated as if he were the King of the castle.

Bonnie struggled to find her place in the myriad of children.

Unlike Cat and Gerry, Bonnie was born to Rhett and Scarlett during the turbulent years of their marriage.

She knew that her father had an extra- marital affair during those years and that _something_ was going on between her mother and Uncle Asley. From there, Wade and Ella helped fill in the gaps in Bonnie's memory, as she was only four when everything fell to pieces.

Things between her parents had never been good, but began to truly deteriorate after her birth.

 _As some sort of punishment for her mother, her father deliberately did everything he could to prevent Bonnie from bonding with her mother, even deciding one day that he was going to take her for a month-long trip to visit her grandmother in Charleston where not once was she allowed to contact her mother._

 _When they returned home, she was told by her father that her mother was going to have a new baby and that she would be a big sister. She remembered her parents constantly yelling about the baby, leading her to later estimate that it was an unplanned pregnancy. Her father even began calling the baby, which was to be a boy, little Ashley; insinuating that he was not the child's biological father._

 _When her mother was six months pregnant, an argument between her parents cumulated in her mother tumbling down the enormous master staircase in the front hall. She vividly recalled the EMS entering her house, trying to revive her mother as blood trickled out of her nose and mouth._

 _The next day she and her siblings were taken by Mammy to see their new baby brother who had been born the night before by an emergency C-section._

 _She remembered being held up to the window of the NICU to get a glimpse at her tiny brother.._

 _This wasn't at all what Bonnie had expected a new baby to look like. His skin was almost transparent and was covered in hair. He was so tiny that even the preemie diapers the nurses had put on him looked huge. There were tubes coming out of his nose and mouth, monitors and machines covering the entire span of his little body._

 _She blew him a kiss from behind the glass and promised to soon return with a present._

 _Two days later, before she could visit again, he died._

 _Bonnie couldn't recall his funeral completely, only the massive arguments her parents had in the months that followed; her mother calling her father a murderer and he, in turn, calling her a cold-hearted bitch_ who _didn't love any of her children._

 _Her mother started isolating herself from the family, spending entire days in bed; while her father began drinking whiskey all day, every day._

 _One day, unable to ever tell his princess no, he had agreed to watch Bonnie while she rode her pony in the garden. Continually nursing the amber colored liquid from a glass tumbler, he soon passed out from the constant flow of alcohol combined with the heat of the sun._

 _He awoke to the sound of ambulance sirens and saw his wife cradling his little girl in her lap as the EMTs rushed about them._

 _Trying to get her daddy's attention, she had attempted to take her pony over a jump that was much too high for her and had fallen head- first as the animal stopped suddenly as he approached the bar._

 _He saw that her perfect little face was covered in scratches and blood. He thought she was dead._

 _Thankfully, she was fine, despite a slight concussion._

 _Three weeks later, she and her siblings were set down by her parents and told that they were separating and would no longer live together. Despite her parents telling her it wasn't anyone's fault, she blamed their splitting up on her fall._

 _During the year that followed, her father had moved to Charleston, only coming to visit a handful of times; never staying long and fighting with her mother most of the time._

 _Wade became his mother's protector, never leaving her side; Ella was spending more and more time with her father and stepmother, leaving a five-year-old Bonnie all alone to grieve her baby brother's death and parents' failed marriage._

"You remind me of someone, Mrs. Butler; I just can't put my finger on it ". Aimee was trying to ease the situation before it became too heated.

"Is it Kim Jun Un? Because she reminds us of him too ", Bonnie said, glaring at her mother as she threw her napkin on the table before storming out of the dining room.

Scarlett rubbed her temples in frustration before gulping down the last of her pinot noir. "Daniel ", she called over her shoulder.

Immediately a man appeared to fill her glass with more.

"Just leave the bottle " she said with a hint of desperation in her voice.


	6. The other daughter - in - law

"So, are we just cutting the ends off , or do you want to do something totally different ?"

"No, Hetty. Just cut the dead ends off. Nothing drastic."

Hetty Tarlton was one of the best hairdressers in Georgia. Her salon was always packed to the gills ,having people making reservations months in advance just to get a basic trim. Hetty rarely cut anyone's hair; just celebrities… and Scarlett; who was infamous as far as the people in Atlanta were concerned, making her a celebrity of sorts as well.

Her decision to open her own salon and not go into animal husbandry, as was tradition in her family, led to a family rift that still remained unrepaired.

"Hetty, please. Don't argue with me. I've had a shitty couple of days". Scarlett pleaded as Hetty fingered through her hair.

Last night, Rhett's mother and sister had flown in for Ella's graduation. Even though Ella was not Rhett's biological child, his family always loved her and Wade the same way they loved Bonnie, Cat, and Gerry; and it was only for that reason, that she agreed to the increasing frequency of visits from her mother in law. Her only hope was that these visits would be enough interaction with her son and grandchildren to keep her firmly rooted in Charleston … and not Atlanta.

It was a rocky start between Scarlett and her husband's mother from the get go. Elenore nearly died when Rhett, at forty-two, told her that he was getting married to a twenty-two-year-old single mother of two from Georgia. She was determined to talk her son out of marrying this infant, whom she was sure was only marrying him for his money.

She prepared to do battle with this little redneck gold digger, only to have her stone heart melt like hot butter when she was introduced to an adorable little red headed toddler and a five-year-old little boy with the biggest brown eyes she had ever seen.

When Ella began calling her "Gamma", any previous prejudices toward Scarlett simply faded into the background.

No doubt, they were still there, resurfacing every now and again, especially when in her company for more than two days.

Now that Butler enterprises had moved their headquarters from Charleston to Atlanta, she feared her mother in law would choose to make her permanent home in Atlanta as well; a thought that gave her nightmares so terrible that she would wake up in a cold sweat.

When Rhett's brother and his wife had moved with the company to Atlanta, severing the familial ties to Charleston even further, Scarlett began to panic and prayed to God that his mother would remain in Charleston for many years to come, continuing on her futile quest to find her daughter Rosemary a suitable husband.

It was no secret that Elenore Butler held little affection for Scarlett. She always referred to her as her "other" daughter- in- law, or "my grandchildren's mother ", when referencing her son and his family to others.

Ross' wife, Margaret, was sweet and gentle, always agreeable to her mother- in – law; and was to everyone, the perfect image of a proper southern lady, focusing her attention and time on creating a home around her husband. Her only fault in Elenore's eyes, was that she was unable to conceive a child and give her a desperately desired grandbaby.

Scarlett, however, was moody, hot tempered, combative, and opinionated. She openly disagreed with her mother – in – law and publicly argued with her husband ; even once threatening to run him over with her car during an argument they had while visiting his family four years ago.

Scarlett had kept her temper in check yesterday, but her patience was wearing thin. This morning, at breakfast, she had almost lost it.

 _"Here's the salt Rhett darling. These eggs are too bland", Elenore said as she sprinkled the salt on her son's breakfast._

 _"They're fine, mama. I'm really trying to cut back on the salt.", Rhett smiled in his wife's direction._

 _She was still upset about him bringing up Belle during their conversation yesterday, and was going to make him suffer for it. She had obviously put her plan into action this morning, as she paraded around their bedroom clad in only her bra and panties; pretending to look for items, finding countless reasons to bend over, giving her husband a perfect view of her rear. She reveled in torturing and tempting him and if he wanted her to play nice, he knew he would have to grovel at her feet for forgiveness today._

 _"Whatever for? A little salt won't hurt you."_

 _Scarlett silently observed this exchange; chewing on in the inside of her cheek to keep from exploding in anger. She could handle the little barbs and snide comments her husband's mother threw her way, but screwing with Rhett's health was unacceptable._

 _With complete gracefulness, she rose from her chair, walked over to her husband's side, and while giving her mother in law the sweetest smile, lifted his plate from the table and gave it to the morning maid with instructions to throw the food away._

 _"Mary, please get captain Butler some breakfast. These eggs are not up to par; are they, Miss Elenore? I'm so pleased that we both agree that Rhett's health is our primary concern, and that his reduction in sodium is necessary if he wants to live to see his children grow up."_

A couple of hours removed from her mother in law's presence would hopefully sustain her in order to survive the next two days.

She happily left the Butler matriarch at home with her grandchildren, while she and her sister in laws went to the salon in preparation for Ella's graduation tonight.

"What exactly is on your head?" Scarlett asked her sister -in – law as she scrolled through the pictures on her phone.

"It's a vagina. "Rosemary laughed as Scarlett shook her head.

Rosemary was always protesting something. From puppy mills to women's rights, she would be the first one in line, demanding justice for others. Scarlett remembered the time Rosie was protesting for PETA and read her the riot act for owning so many fur coats.

 _"Scarlett , do you know how many baby seals had to die for that?!" she admonished, while rummaging through her sister in law's extensive wardrobe._

 _"Rosie , if you even try to throw a speck of red paint on any of them , I swear , I will kill you " was her reply._

"And what exactly are you protesting?" she asked, raising her green eyes to look at her feminist sister in law. The entire Woman's march made very little sense to Scarlett.

She was no stranger to struggling for acceptance in the world. She was raised by a black woman, her father was an Irish immigrant with a terrible temper and massive drinking problem, and was from one of the poorest counties in Georgia. She and her sisters always wore hand me downs, had to get the free lunches at school, and were the recipients of the charitable donations from local churches during holidays. She was the girl that everyone whispered about in high school; taunted with words such as "whore" and "slut "; and when she became pregnant in her senior year, all people said was that they expected nothing less from a fast piece like Scarlett O' Hara.

Scarlett knew all too well the necessity of a protest and its impact of the future of our country, she would sit at Mammy's feet for hours listening to her stories about growing up in the segregated south and her participation in the sit ins and bus boycotts. What she didn't understand was how screaming vulgarities, burning cars, and killing people would bring about the desired changes.

" Are you serious , Scarlett ?! "Rosemary was indignant. "We're fighting for women's rights ; for equal treatment ; for the control of our own bodies ! "

"….And you're showing how serious you are by wearing a huge vagina on your head?"

Scarlett and Rosemary, despite being completely different in nearly every possible way, had become very close over the years. Theirs was a relationship where they could debate about politics or religion without malice or contempt; a luxury not enjoyed by many. If there was one woman who could handle Scarlett, it was Rosie; and Scarlett respected and admired her for it.

"I don't expect you to understand. You ARE the epitome of female subjugation" she said are she waved her hand up and down at Scarlett to drive her point home.

Hetty just continued brushing out Scarlett's curls; knowing her well enough to know when to keep quiet. Rosie was entering dangerous territory.

"What are you two arguing about ?", Maggie said , her hair wrapped in foil, handing Scarlett another mimosa before sitting in the chair to the left of her.

"Please Rosie, tell me how I am a living representation of all that is wrong with women. "Scarlett said as she sipped on her badly needed morning drink. She loved Rosie, but was in no mood to debate politics.

" Well, for starters , you're forty ….."

"I am THIRTY-NINE, thank you very much ! " Scarlett was going to squeeze every second out of her thirties.

"Okay , thirty nine then; but look at you ! You look thirty at most."

"Thank you, Rosie " she smiled.

"That's not a compliment. You do everything you can to stay looking young. "Rosie continued.

"You dye your hair, what...once a month? Your fill up your face with poison to smooth out wrinkles, not to mention whatever you do to your lips, and don't deny that you do something to them either; you get every ounce of fat sucked out of you, your tits have been pulled up and filled to look like you're a teenager, your nails are fake, your eyelashes have …. whatever those things are on them, and I could bounce quarters off your ass! And for what? …..For men? …..For my brother?"

Scarlett nervously laughed. She did do those things, she just didn't realize how vain they made her sound when said by someone else. Leave it to Rosie to point it out to her.

"Rosie, that's where you're wrong. I do all these things for me. They make me feel good about myself. "

She continued, "What I don't understand is that you're saying you are fighting for women's rights, but bash my right as a woman to dye my hair, get Botox, and have a little cosmetic surgery. "

"Yes, I am APPROACHING forty, I dye my hair so often because it's so black the grey just sticks out. I have had a "mommy makeover "because I wanted my body to return to some sort of normalcy after six pregnancies and breast feeding for a combined total of eight years. My nails are fake … because I like them this way …and my eyelashes have extensions because they make my eyes even brighter."

"My eyes are my best feature, aren't they Hetty?" Scarlett said, looking up and winking at her personal hairdresser.

"For sure ", Hetty agreed. Scarlett's eyes were always the first thing people noticed about her.

"Does this make me any less of a woman than you? Aren't you oppressing my choices right now, because you don't agree with them?"

Rosemary leant back in her chair. "But why do you like these things? Who told you they were beautiful? Don't you know that you were programmed to like these things BECAUSE you are a girl !?"

"And don't you think you were programmed to think they're wrong?"

"Scarlett, please keep your head straight. Unless you WANT me to cut you." Hetty demanded as she pushed her head forward . The more animated this conversation was becoming , the harder it was to cut a straight line.

Scarlett locked eyes through the mirror with her equally head-strong sister in law and smiled. "Let's pick this conversation up later to when I don't have a sharp object near my jugular"

Hetty quickly completed her work, focusing on the black curls with a surgeon like precision to detail.

" Ms. Tarlton , suite three is ready for Mrs. Butler ", one of the new girls working at the salon notified her.

"Thank you, Lexi ", she breathed out . " Alright Susan B. Anthony, you're free to go."

Hetty shook out Scarlett's hair before removing the draping laid over her clothes , allowing her to get up.

"What are you having done now?" Maggie asked, winking at Rosie as she asked this. Maggie rarely joined in during the verbal battle of wits between Rosie and Scarlett, but It was just too much fun to tease their sister in law.

"Since the two of you are just SO interested in me ; I'm getting waxed…..everywhere. Would you like to come watch ?"

The three woman laughed; truly enjoying each other's company.

"Um, no thank you ." , they said between laughs.

Before entering the hallway leading to the suites, Scarlett turned around toward her sister in laws .

"And by the way, Rosie,…..this …. I AM doing for your brother."

 ** _I couldn't imagine that Scarlett , being a modern woman , would have no opinion on the women's march. This is just my own creative characterization based on MM's description of her ._**


	7. Tripping with ducks and special grass

**_I had so much fun writing this chapter. Maturish content and language… be warned ;) This chapter kind of jumps around. Hope it not's too confusing._**

 _ **(Ella and Grace in the garden )**_

"Ella ! Can you believe we just graduated?!, Grace exclaimed while hugging her friend.

Ella knew she should be excited, but she felt on edge, knowing that her mother and father were being forced to engage in polite conversation for hours now. Ella could only ever remember a few times in her life, when there had not been a battle royale between her parents.

Thankfully, they tended to behave themselves during family celebrations and holidays, always trying to put on a front that their divorce was, in the words of Gwyneth Paltrow , a peaceful uncoupling.

No one was witness to the secret shots of alcohol her mother was consuming, or the cuss words her father was mumbling under his breath , as they attempted to continue the rouse during these gatherings.

"This party is on point too."

The Butlers had _"graciously_ " agreed to host the graduation party for the one hundred sixty-two graduating seniors and their families. Ella had an ominous feeling that this "gesture" of kindness by her mother is what shifted her grades in English and math upward from Ds to Cs.

"Man, your parents are so freaking rich." Grace commented, observing the elaborate celebration.

Ella winced inwardly at the term , " Your Parents".

Rhett Butler was NOT her parent; he was her step parent.

Like Wade, Ella had seen the terrible things that happened between her mother and step-father. Like Wade, it was hard for her to forgive him for some of things he did, or the way he left her mother when she needed him the most. And to Ella, who adored her mother, some of these things were unforgivable. Her father might argue and verbally battle with her mother, but he had always treated her with respect; something her uncle Rhett only occasionally did.

"Did you see how many hot guys are here ?"

Ella smiled, knowing that Grace was trying so hard to conceal her breaking heart. Seeing Wade with his girlfriend was tearing her up inside. She was shocked that Wade was with this plain girl, who wore little make up and had bad taste in clothes. She wondered how he could prefer THAT to her. Deep in her heart, she really did believe that she would be his wife one day.

"Anyway , I got you something ." Grace handed Ella a box filled with different types of candy and sweets. "It's for being such a sweet friend. I know it's corny…..but whatever."

"Thanks Gracie !"

"And, there's this ". Grace pulled a little snapshot from long ago out of the box. It was a picture of the two of them in first grade, cheesing it up with missing teeth and freckled faces. Ella began tearing up , thinking of all the years she spent with Grace. They had been thick as thieves since they could walk, and now they would be separating for the first time ; Ella going to college in Georgia and Grace in Louisiana.

Ella hugged her best friend for the past fourteen years. "I love you, Gracie. Don't forget about me when you're partying it up on Bourbon Street , okay ?"

" Ella Kennedy , you better stop making me cry ! " Grace said as she pulled away from the embrace , carefully wiping away the tears in her eyes.

"And …. These babies here " , Grace said holding up a pink mesh bag filled with four sweet- tarts , " are laced with LSD."

"Grace! Seriously?! Are you crazy ?! You brought DRUGS to the party ?!"

"It's not like I brought crack rocks ! "

"One of these days Ella, you're going to need to unwind, and these little cuties are going to help you do it."

"Thanks….I guess."

"Grace, you continue to shock me, I'll say that much "

Ella hugged her friend again and thanked her for the present and well-meant hallucinogens.

"Enough emotional crap" Grace was never comfortable with long displays of affection. They made her feel uncomfortable.

"Come on, I want you to meet someone."

Ella placed Grace's gift on the back table, obscuring it as much as possible ; shoving the sweet tarts to the bottom , before following her friend to meet this mystery person.

" Taz, this is Ella , my friend I was telling you about ."

"I met Taz while visiting Tulane this Spring. "

Taz was older, Ella wasn't sure about his actual age, but she knew he wasn't one of these immature high school boys. He was tall and muscular, with dark brown hair , cut short , perfectly complimenting his blue eyes and strong jawline. She noticed that he had some slight stubble on his face , and a large tattoo on his forearm , indicating to Ella that he must be a " bad boy ". He didn't dress like the boys Ella had known all her life either; the preppy little jerks always clad in seersucker and bowties, but had a style she could only identify as "grungy casual".

"Hello, Ella." He said looking Ella up and down. "Gracie told me you were pretty. She didn't say anything about you being beautiful."

"Oh listen to that! These creole boys know just what to say to a lady " Grace said, playfully nudging Taz.

Ella felt her face flush. She looked down, hoping this guy wouldn't notice her embarrassment. Boys never talked to her like this. Her sister Bonnie was, as everyone said, the _beautiful one_ , always had guys fawning over her telling her how gorgeous she was; the best Ella got, was that she was pretty.

"I'll be right back. You two should get to know each other ", Grace winked at Ella as she walked away.

 ** _( Frank, Scarlett, Maggie, and Rosie in the garden) - doesn't this remind you of clue ? __**

"Well, we did good Scarlett. "Frank said as he approached his ex-wife, handing her a new glass of champagne. "She's grown up so fast; it seems like just yesterday we brought her home from the hospital. Remember how tiny she was?"

"I remember." Scarlett agreed, her voice tinged with sorrow. Ella was no longer her sweet little baby girl, but was now a young woman about to embark on her own adventures in life. Frank was right, the years had flown by too quickly.

"I never thanked you ; you know …. for keeping her."

"Frank" Scarlett pleaded. She did not want to discuss this now ... or ever... with him.

"No," he said cutting her off mid-sentence," I know that you …we…. could have done things differently. ".

"Frank I want you to understand this; what happened … what you did… I regret; but not for one second do I regret a moment with Ella. Please, this is a happy day, let's not talk about this now. ".

She sighed in relief as Rosemary and Maggie walked over toward them.

"Frank, right?" Maggie said in greeting her sister in law's former husband. Frank quickly greeted the her and removed himself from the gaggle of women standing before him. India HATED whenever he had anything to say to Scarlett, always accusing her of trying to seduce her husband into getting what she wanted. She would be incensed to see him conversing with not one, but three lovely ladies.

Rosie couldn't help but notice the pale- grey coloring of Scarlett's face. "Scarlett , are you okay ? You don't look like you're feeling well."

Scarlett did not feel well. She had felt feverish and achy all afternoon. She was sure that she had caught her four-year old's cold.

The downside of having a snuggly and loving mama's boy, was that he showered his mommy with kisses that were sometimes snot covered, requested to share anything she ate or drank, and curled up to her at night, coughing and sneezing right into her face.

"My throat is really killing me "

"You need a peppermint or something. It'll soothe your throat." Maggie, always nurturing, suggested. "Do you have any?"

"No , I'm fine really "

Rosemary glanced among the tables for some sort of candy or anything that would soothe a sore throat. She eyed a box with lollipops and gummy bears falling out of it on a table in the back.

Rosie brought the box of treats to Scarlett, rummaging through the various items "Oh look, there's some sweet-tarts in this baggie. These might help ", she said handing Scarlett one of the tangy wafers before popping on in her mouth.

"I'll go get see what's in the house. I'm sure you have something in there to help ". Maggie walked toward the huge Butler mansion on a mission. Finding something in this expansive domain would not be easy.

 _ **( Taz and Ella - in the garden)**_

"So, what are your plans now that you've graduated?"

Ella noticed that he had an accent. It wasn't a southern drawl, but more like someone from New York. She thought it was utterly attractive.

"I'm starting at the University of Georgia in the fall. I'm not really sure what I'll major in though… maybe business, my dad is always saying he wants me to take over the store one day."

"Well, if ownin' a store gets you a house like this one, I'd say that business the major to take." He said glancing around the splendor of the Bulter mansion.

"Oh, this isn't my father's house. This is my mother's and stepfather's house….My parents are divorced."

"Gotcha "was Taz's reply. "Most parents split up these days. My dad left when I was a baby. "

Ella was so engrossed in the conversation, that for the first time in her life, she was completely focused, not paying any attention to anything but the gorgeous man in front of her.

 _ **( Rosie , Scarlett, Rhett- starting in the garden - moving then to the master bedroom )**_

" Rosemary ….. Rosie…. Come feel this tablecloth. It's sooooo soft …..like silk. I never noticed how soft it was" Scarlett said , rubbing her hands over the expanse of the table.

Rosemary was looking around the back garden in a panic and ignored her sister in law.

Scarlett removed her shoes and loudly moaned as she felt the grass between her toes. " This grass is special. The blades are moving to the music! Come look at this ! The grass is speaking to me! It wants me to touch it ! "

" Scarlett, when did you get so many ducks? They're like fifty of them! " Rosie backed up against the table in fear.

Scarlett threw herself on the table , rubbing her face and upper body along the breadth of the cloth.

"They're coming towards us ! These little fuckers are going to kill me ! I see that crazy in their eyes !"Rosemary screamed, attempting to pull Scarlett off the table to use as a human shield.

At that moment , Rhett was alerted to the strange behavior of his wife and sister.

"Rhett, why is Scarlett dry humping that table? … I don't know what Rosie is doing over there either." Rhett's younger brother laughed. He loved anytime his older brother, their mother's gold child, failed at something or faced humiliation.

Walking swiftly over to them, Rhett noticed that Scarlett was unbuttoning her blouse while Rosie was mumbling incoherently about savage ducks.

"Rhett… you need to feel this. It's unbelievable…"

"Scarlett , let's go inside."

" No Rhett! " she said with the same look he saw in his daughter whenever she begged him for something. " This grass… it NEEDS me to stay…. It's SPECIAL grass…."

She leant down , extending her hand to fell the texture of the blades.

" Rhett! Why did you get these ducks ?! They're killers !" Rosie screamed in her brother's ear, grabbing at his arms for protection.

Rhett grabbed his wife off the ground, pulling her shirt together to cover her exposed lingerie. He took his other hand, and forcefully pushed her toward the house; yelling for Rosemary to follow them. Rosie gladly followed as she was certain she was fighting for her life from the murderous ducks who were surely plotting her death.

He pushed both women upstairs and into the master bedroom . Thank God, the house was mostly empty; with only family roaming around the corridors.

"What did you take?" he asked the women.

Obviously, they were on something; Scarlett returned to her task of removing her clothes, and was now only clad in her panties and stockings, while his sister was slamming the windows closed and making sure the doors were locked.

"Take? "Scarlett breathed between rolling her naked body over the satin sheets.

"You know what Rhett, "Rosie came up so close to his face that he could see her pupils were completely dilated. "These ducks are not normal ducks, they're mutant ducks planted here by Monsanto; I'm sure of it!... Well, they'll never take me alive! "

"Oh Rhett, will you get me a duck? I want ….to touch … the soft feathers "

Rhett rolled his eyes. He was sure that Rosie was on LSD, and guessed that his wife probably was on an acid trip as well.

"Scarlett" he shouted as he climbed across the bed towards his naked wife." Look at me." Her pupils were so large that almost all the green was covered by them.

She began rubbing her hands over his shirt , raising her legs to feel the fabric of his pants with her feet.

" Fuck me , Rhett" , " Fuck me on these delicious sheets " ; every time he tried to escape her grasp , she would pull him back down again. As much as he wanted to give in to his wife's demands , he couldn't forget about Rosie ; she had disappeared into their bathroom, and he could only imagine what she was doing in there.

As he attempted to dislodge his wife's fingers from the waistband of his trousers, Rosie flew back into the bedroom, this time with a gun she had found in her brother's closet.

"Come and get me , you mother- fuckers ! "

 _ **(Bonnie and Beau in the sitting room)**_

" What's wrong with the little princess ?"

Bonnie was sulking in the grand sitting room. She was still banned from her phone and was told by her father that part of her punishment was to entertain her brother and sister during the party. Gerry had been ushered up to bed , and Cat was up in her room , drowning out the noise of the part with her headphones.

Bonnie had also not been allowed to invite any friends to the party, and was completely bored. The last person she wanted to sit and talk with was Beau Wilkes.

" Ugh " Bonnie groaned. " What do you want ?"

" I was wondering why you weren't out there trying to steal the spotlight… as usual…"

Bonnie did seem to steal the spotlight whenever possible. People rarely had anything negative to say about it though. She was so charming, that people didn't seem to mind that she monopolized every situation. Only Beau consistently berated her for it; calling her a little princess in every conversation.

"Go away Beau ! You bore me to no end . Go aggravate Wade." , She said as she turned her back to him.

" I was just on my way to find him. I guess he's stealing a few minutes ALONE with his new love"

Bonnie turned around , glaring at him with her clear blue eyes, "You're disgusting."

Beau laughed , " Do you like her ? Does she meet with the Princess' approval? "

" You know what Beau , I think you get off on teasing me."

" Please , you're my cousin.", Beau could feel his cheeks becoming red.

Bonnie could see that he was becoming nervous. She had found his weakness, and now was going to take him down, " You're my BROTHER'S cousin. We are NOT related. Anything between us would be perfectly fine." She moved closer to him. She could see the beads of sweat forming on his forehead. "You like me Beau, don't you? It makes you uncomfortable to be around me, so you tease me to cover it up."

Beau was trembling, Bonnie was right, she wasn't his cousin; in fact, they weren't related at all, not by blood or marriage.

He, not being blind, knew how beautiful she was. Her face was perfection. He loved the way she would glare at him in anger, her cheeks flushing to a perfect pink. He loved the way she wrinkled her nose when she was trying to concentrate; but most of all , he loved when she would raise her eyebrow at him in disgust.

But it wasn't the way she looked that captivated him , it was her carefree attitude and unyielding determination that drew him in. He did tease her, but not to confuse _her_ , but to convince _himself_ that he was not in love with his cousin's younger sister who was only fifteen.

Bonnie looked up at him; her blue eyes wide and innocent and her lips in a perfect pout. " You do . Don't you, Beau?"

" Umm"…..he nervously licked his lips and wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand." Do you….I mean…. I….. if you see your brother , tell him I was looking for him."

" Coward "Bonnie whispered to herself as he left the room.

Bonnie was confused about her feelings for Beau. She WANTED to hate him; he drove her crazy. He never flattered her or told her things like the other boys. In fact, he always called her out on her bad behavior, calling her spoiled, vain, pretentious, and ungrateful.

But there was something about him that made her feel both excited and nervous. She shamefully even fantasized what it be like to kiss him or lie in his arms.

The main thing that caused her stress, was the fact that she was sure her father would drop dead from a heart attack if she ever became romantically involved with Beau. It wasn't that he had something against Beau, in fact, he liked him a lot.

He did , however, have a MAJOR problem with Beau's father.

" Ugh ! " Bonnie loudly groaned as she threw one of the plush sofa pillows in frustration, knocking a small vase off of a side table.

The sound of the porcelain object crashing to the floor alerted Maggie, who was busy digging through the downstairs pantry, looking for something to soothe Scarlett's throat.

Maggie crept into the room , giving it a quick glance over ,and saw Bonnie sprawled out on the long sofa.

" Bonnie , are you okay ?"

" Aunt Maggie , are all boys such huge douchebags ?"

Maggie laughed and was about to enter the room to talk with her niece when they both heard a gunshot coming from upstairs.

 _ **(A whole crapload of people in the master bedroom )**_

" Rosie ! No! "Rhett shouted as he fought his sister for the gun. The struggle between them caused the gun to fire.

Bonnie and Maggie were immediately on the other side of the door , threatening to break it down if he didn't open it up. They could hear shouting and screams coming from inside.

" Daddy ! Are you okay ?!"

" Rhett , open the door ! What the hell is going on ?!"

" Mama !" " Mama , answer me !"

" Open the door or I'm calling the police !"

Rhett opened the door , his face covered in sweat ; his hair tussled ; his shirt torn open , and his belt undone. He had covered his wife's naked body in one of the bathrobes hanging behind the bathroom door and was tightly holding on to her waist by wrapping his left forearm around her.

Seeing her father in this disheveled state and her mother wrapped tightly in a fluffy pink robe with her lipstick smeared and naked collarbone and décolleté exposed, she covered her eyes in mortification; certain that she had just caught her parents in some sort of sexual act.

Maggie had the same idea as well. "You two are freaky. What kind of sex games are you playing?" She whispered while watching her sister in law struggle to free herself from her husband's tight embrace.

"Bonnie, go make sure your brother in sister are in bed. Your mother is not well." Rhett commanded while motioning for Maggie to enter the room.

Maggie closed the door behind her and while turning around, discovered Rosie tied up to a chair with several belts and neckties.

"What the fuck?! "Maggie never swore, but this situation was too crazy and required the use of expletives.

"I need you to tell me what they were doing tonight. They're both on a serious LSD trip. Who gave them drugs ?!"

Rosemary was shouting something incoherent, not able to articulate her words, as she was gagged with Scarlett's Hermes scarf. She began rocking her chair back and forth, attempting to loosen her restraints.

"They didn't take anything; nothing that I saw. I swear Rhett, they were fine an hour ago. "

Rhett gripped his wife tightly as she continued to struggle free. "Rhett" she panted " I am so thirsty. I need something to drink ". He ignored her plea and continued to question Maggie.

"Did they drink or eat anything strange? "

"No, Scarlett said her throat was sore, and Rosie gave her a piece of candy she found in a gift box on the table. That's all, I swear! "

"Did Rosie eat one too?" he was now yelling, trying to be heard over his sister's groans and his wife's loud cries for water.

Rosie, with her typical resilience, had shifted the scarf off her mouth , allowing her to speak . "Maggie, don't let them get me… Maggie , Maggie… please! Rhett's working with them. He's a spy for Monsanto!"

"Maggie !" Scarlett joined in," I am going to die. I NEED water. Please! Get me some fucking water !"

Maggie wasn't sure she wasn't on an acid trip as well. In her wildest dreams, she couldn't imagine a situation as crazy as this.

Scarlett's assistant Hugh heard the shouts coming from upstairs, and bravely ventured into his bosses' bedroom. After working so closely with Scarlett for almost fifteen years, he knew the sound of her screams very well.

Hugh was more than an assistant. From bringing papers to her to review at 2 am, to buying her feminine products, he did everything and anything she asked. He wasn't the brightest person for the job, but he was loyal and seemed to be able to handle her ever changing temperament.

Throughout the years, he had become a fixture in the Butler family. It wasn't unusual to see him playing with Gerry or watching soap operas with Mammy.

"Is there anything I can do ? "Hugh nervously asked as he took in the scene that was before him.

" Hugh …. I … need … water….." Scarlett pleaded.

" Yes, go get Scarlett something to drink " Rhett yelled as the poor man ran to the bathroom to find a drink for his dehydrated boss.

"Don't go in there! " Rosie screamed " Don't let the ducks out ! They're mutants, they are probably invisible and hiding in there! Rhett….. you are sending that man to his DEATH!"

"Maggie," Rhett was getting out of breath," I think those sweet tarts had been tainted with LSD. They should be coming off this trip in a few hours, if I'm right."

" A few hours, Rhett?! What do we do with them until then ?!" Maggie questioned with wide eyes.

Hugh returned with a cup filled with liquid, and placed it at Scarlett's mouth, allowing her to gulp it down.

Scarlett jerked back in Rhett's arms instantly, spitting the blue drink out of her mouth in repulsion; all over Rhett's face.

" What did you give her !" Rhett growled at Hugh as he wiped the liquid from his face.

" She said she needed something to drink , so I gave her to first thing I saw."

Rhett smelled the minty residue that remained on his face. " You asshole ! This is fucking mouthwash !"

For a moment , he loosened his grip on his wife, allowing her to free herself from his grasp.

"Run, Rosie ! "She screamed , knocking her tied up sister in law's chair over with a kick of her foot , before running stark naked out of the bedroom and right past her son's girlfriend.

" Son of a bitch !", Rosie yelled , hitting her head on the bare floor. Whatever Scarlett's intention was by knocking over the chair, it did nothing to free her from her restraints.

"Stop her ! " Rhett howled , running behind his naked wife.

 _ **(Suellen in the hallway)**_

Scarlett's younger sister Suellen wandered along the corridors of her sister's home seething in anger and jealousy. Separated in age by only fifteen months, the two sisters had never been close; fighting and arguing since they were in diapers.

In Sue's mind, her sister was undeserving of all this. She saw her sister as a manipulating and conniving bitch that wasn't above stealing someone's finance. She didn't care how many years had passed, she could NEVER forgive her for running off with Frank.

She felt guilty thinking about Frank and how she wished she would have married him instead of Will. Will was a good husband and a great father, he worked hard keeping up the family home; never complaining or getting angry with his wife when she would start wailing about how miserable she was , and that this is not what she wanted out of life.

If she would have married Frank, she would be wealthy now; not as rich as Scarlett, but rich nonetheless. Although Frank lost half of all his assets and his lumber mill when he and Scarlett divorced, he still was considerably wealthy. She was sure that if he had married her instead of her hot-tempered sister, she would have made him happy; much happier than Scarlett or India ever could.

She knew Frank was as much to blame as Scarlett for their elopement, but she couldn't help put the blame solely on her sister. She was certain that Frank was unwillingly taken in by her sister's seductive tricks, and was too much of a gentleman to walk away from her once he came to his senses.

At that moment, Suellen was pulled out of her malignant daydream by the sight of her sister barreling down the hall. "Sue! "Rhett called, "grab her !"

Suellen would be more than happy to forcefully restrain her sister. She was unsure what was happening; her sister was naked, obviously scared, and was being chased by her half-dressed husband. Sue didn't need to know the details causing this scene to know that it was Scarlett's fault. EVERYTHING was Scarlett's fault.

It was Scarlett's fault she didn't get to marry to love of her life; her fault that she lived in a run-down farm , her fault she had to clip coupons and buy clothes from clearance racks; Scarlett was the cause of all her life's misery.

" Scarlett ! Hurry ! I won't let him get you ! " she shouted as she motioned for her sister to seek shelter in the nearest room with her.

Scarlett bolted into the room, leaning on the back of the door in sheer exhaustion.

" Thank you ….so much Sue…." She panted. " Do you… do you.. have any water ?"

" Of course I do. " Sue said sweetly , her back turned to her sister as if she was pouring her sister a glass of water.

Swiftly, she turned to face Scarlett.

"Here's your water bitch" she bluntly stated before knocking her sister unconscious with one hard punch to her face.


	8. You won't like me when I'm angry

The morning after the graduation party , Ella woke to find her step father waiting for her in the dining room ; Grace's present to Ella placed in the middle of the table.

 _" Do you have something to tell me , Ella ?", he sternly asked._

 _She stood still , terrified and lost for words._

 _" How about this" he continued , " I'll save you the trouble of lying to me . Where did you get the drugs ?"_

 _Ella remained rooted to the floor as his black eyes, void of any emotion, pierced through to her soul._

 _" They're not mine.. I mean …. They were given to me … I didn't take any Uncle Rhett , I swear ! "_

 _"No , your mother and aunt Rosie saved you the trouble of doing that._ _ **They**_ _took the LSD thinking it was innocent candy. Do you know that I had to tie them BOTH down for hours last night ?…that your aunt Rosie almost shot me…with my own gun..? ….. that your mother was running through this house NAKED during the party ? And , by the way, your mother is going to likely kill your aunt Sue when she wakes up... All that money I was going to spend on your car and apartment , I'll have to use to make sure she won't get the chair. "_

When Ella saw her mother later in the morning , she cringed. She hated herself for causing this.

The left side of her face was swollen and red ; her enormous black eye likely to remain for weeks to come. And Rhett was right ; the moment Scarlett learned that Suellen caused the temporary disfigurement to her face, she was furious and hell bent on killing her in retaliation.

Bust still ….She almost wished the punishment from her mother was similar to the one she had given her Aunt Suellen; painful yet swift… even though her mother's "punishment" had left her Aunt Sue with a broken nose, she'd willingly accept it herself if it meant she didn't have to be here. She was certain if she worked in the store day after day for more than just the summer , she would soon be joining her Paw-Paw in the memory care center at the assisted living facility.

The focus on her involvement in her mother and aunt's recent acid trip thankfully didn't last long ,thanks to Wade's sudden announcement that he and Aimee were engaged.

It was one of the few times in her life that she had ever seen her mother shocked speechless.

Part of her punishment for refusing to tell her parents who supplied her with the drugs , was that she had to work five days a week , eight hours a day , at the store; delivering her minuscule paychecks to her mother each week for safe keeping until she left for college in the fall.

Everyday was the same ; she would come in around 8:30 to open , check in the stock order, take inventory, work the register, and then report to her step mother to see if she needed anything done.

Ella hated interacting with her step mother; especially when her father wasn't present. She felt used by her; especially by the way she bestowed orders on Ella as if she were some type of indentured servant.

The bright part in her day was seeing Taz.

He came in the first time a couple of weeks ago, looking for lightweight tackle. Since then , he found an excuse to patron Kennedys' everyday. At first Ella thought nothing of it; Kennedys', with its quaint country charm , was a favorite among locals and tourists alike. But when Taz became a daily customer , usually visiting during her breaks , she began to realize that it was more than Kennedys' famous fudge that was drawing him to the store each day.

Mostly they just talked, sharing their thoughts and beliefs . Sometimes , they would discuss plans they each had for the future ; other times , they would tell each other lame jokes ,leaving her laughing so hard that her side would hurt. She felt at ease with him , able to share with him her fears and stories from her past that still tormented her.

He told her about his past in New Orleans , the trouble he had gotten into , and his turbulent lifestyle. She never judged him or looked at him as a criminal or degenerate; something most people did when they learned that he had a four-page long rap sheet.

She told him about her numerous failures on her driving tests, he offered to help her practice driving.

He told her that he quit school in the tenth grade, she helped him sign up for the GED.

He told her his worries about his mother and the guilt he felt about leaving her alone in Atlanta, she told him her fears about leaving her mother to go off to college and the distrust she still had of her step-father.

There were a few times Ella was sure he was going to kiss her. A couple of times, she even pursed her lips together in anticipation. But he never had the nerve to go through with it. She reasoned that if he didn't kiss her soon , she would buck the rules to being a lady , and kiss him herself.

Looking up at the giant grandfather clock that was the centerpiece of Kennedys' show room floor , she stood transfixed ; counting the minutes until her lunch break, and Taz's expected arrival.

" Ella , I need you in here" , her stepmother called out from her office.

Ella walked in somberly, dreading the awful moments she would have to share alone with her.

" I need you to clean this office. It's a mess " , she said waving her hand around to draw attention to the office's complete disarray. As if Ella needed any help seeing the sheer filth that the office was in.

" All of it ? " , Ella questioned . This would take her hours. She'd rather eat glass than spend more than twenty minutes alone with her stepmother; she feared for her sanity if she had to spend an hour in her company.

"Oh , I'm sorry your highness. Is cleaning my office beneath you?"

Ella locked eyes with her. She pursed her lips together in a flat line, indicating the sheer hatred she had for her. " You're disgusting ." she thought to herself.

She wasn't quite sure if it was the fact that India was always so nasty to her , that made her appear so repulsive , or if she truly was as ugly as she seemed.

She was convinced that she'd never understand men; her father included.

India Wilkes Kennedy was old and haggard looking. It was if she was _trying_ to look old. Her hair was greying at the roots and pulled back into a severe bun, making her look like a cross between an old witch and evil school- master. Her deep-set brown eyes were ringed with black circles and lined with deep wrinkles and crow's feet. She never groomed her eyebrows, leaving them to expand over her long face like untamed ivy climbing the walls of an abandoned home. She was thin; too thin really, causing her collarbone and jaw to protrude in an unnatural way. She never wore make- up , painted her nails, or dyed her hair. She obviously didn't care about what she wore; and wore the same T-shirt ( in various colours ) with the Kennedys' logo and khaki pants everyday.

Ella wondered how her father went from her beautiful mother to this shrew of a woman. Her mother was exquisite ; India was revolting . Her mother's ebony tresses glistened in the sunlight ; India's graying locks looked dull, frizzy, and lifeless. Her mother's green eyes were alluring and captivating ; India's brown eyes looked like pools of dirty pool water. Her mother's magnolia white skin was flawless ; India's freckled olive skin was teeming with deep set lines. Her mother was elegant and classy ; India smoked like a chimney and had lingering body odor.

She knew her mother HATED her father. Even now , so many years after their divorce , she constantly belittled him; but she couldn't even imagine how that would drive her father to be with someone like India.

She smiled thinking of the last conversation between her parents that she overheard.

This past Monday, Mary the morning maid had alerted her mother during breakfast that her father was on the phone and **NEEDED** to speak to her **right away**.

 _"Thank you Mary, I'll take it in here ."_

 _"What, now? "and not hello was her phone greeting for her former husband._

 _Scarlett silently listened to Ella's father's prattle for almost two minutes before interrupting him._

 _"Frank, I'm sorry, but I don't speak idiot_ _ **or**_ _asshole. Why don't you call the office and have Hugh translate whatever it is that you're trying to say to me. Then I can address your concerns. Goodbye."_

 _This was one of the nicer ways she spoke to Frank. She was in high spirits ,having just driven her mother in law to the airport ; sending her home , miles away from Atlanta . This time , she actually took his call and spoke to him, rather than her normal approach of taking the call, only to scream at him not to bother her before hanging up on him ._

 _"Mom, I've decided. Since I didn't do so hot in Spanish this year, I'm going to request to take asshole next year as a foreign language." Bonnie teased._

 _Scarlett turned toward her husband, shook her head, and sighed "I really think the girls are in a competition to see who can make me go insane first"._

Ella silently began dusting the shelves and clearing up the muddle of papers, coffee cups , and cigarette butts that were strewn across the desk and sideboard. She was working at breakneck speed. The faster she finished in here, the faster she could meet Taz outside.

The sound of fingernails tapping on the office door drew Ella out of her trance. It was Honey , India's younger sister.

She too looked like she had been through the wringer a few times.

If Ella could describe her with one word , it would be _desperate._ Honey was one of those women who refused to accept her age or even try to tactically try and reverse the signs of aging as her mother did. She tried to appear " cool " and " hang" with the twenty something crowd… and was failing miserably.

She was so desperate to be young and sexy that her bleached blond hair was stripped with ammonia so often that it was fried and frizzy, contrasting terribly with her spray tanned skin. And she wore clothing she wore! They were downright trashy and provocative; Ella suspected she bought them at a sex store or some other totally inappropriate place. The worst thing about her was the way she acted around men. She acted like a dog in heat around them, even around Ella's father ; her own sister's husband.

Come to think of it , Ella realized , her father did seem to have a knack for attracting the sisters of the woman he was involved with…..

She quietly groaned to herself as Honey opened the door. It was bad enough that she had to deal with India ; but having to deal with Honey as well should be classified as cruel and unusual punishment.

" Hey , I wanted to show this guy I was matched with on the dating site ." Honey said , pushing her way into the office , giving no notice to Ella… to which she was grateful.

She hovered over her sister's dirty laptop that was yellowing and covered in ash from the constant exposure of cigarette smoke, tar, and nicotine.

" Get a load of him ! He can eat crackers in my bed anytime he wants! ." she said , showing her crooked bottom teeth as she smiled.

Ella audibly laughed, causing the two sisters to turn their attention from the poor victim electronically matched with Honey to her.

" You have something to say , Ella ?" India snarled.

"No". Ella did not want to engage these women. All she wanted to do was finish here and meet up with Taz.

" You have a problem with singles going on dating sites ? " Honey was trying to bait her.

She remained silent.

" Well I guess I wouldn't need to go on them if I were a whore like your mother."

Ella's green eyes flashed with fire. She was known by everyone to be Scarlett's calm and sweet child , the one who never caused any trouble ; but attack her family , especially her mother , and a whole different side of Ella emerged.

" Don't you dare call my mother a whore ! " she spewed ,forcefully throwing down her broom in fury . " You both are so jealous of her you can't see straight."

" Pick up that broom and finish cleaning in here !" India demanded

" You clean this pigpen up. You're filthy and disgusting; leaving all this crap everywhere. Everything about the two of you is revolting. I feel as if I need to bathe with bleach after being in this room with you."

" Well , young lady , I mustn't be all that revolting ,since your father chose me over your mother."

Thinking they just gained the upper hand in the argument against a seventeen year old girl, India and Honey smirked at their perceived victory statement.

" Actually, my mother left daddy.. and took him to the cleaners with child support and alimony payments, the deed to the house and ownership of the lumber mills …"

India fumed with anger ; thinking about how Scarlett profited financially from her divorce from Frank. She couldn't understood why he gave in to her unreasonable demands without a fight.

"And the next time you're so sure he **_CHOSE_** you over her, I suggest you go look at all the pictures of her he has stuffed in his top desk drawer; there's about twenty of them. I think he even has a glove of hers in there too…. And that perfume he suggested you wear, you know, they one you just _love_ …. guess who wore that same scent for years and years? Looks to me like YOU'RE the one living in HER shadow"

" And in case you need reminding **INDIA** , my mother owns fifty one percent of this store….. so, technically , SHE is YOUR boss. If I were you, I'd be careful about associating with people that call the woman who signs your paycheck a whore."

She thundered out of the office door into the hustle and bustle that always materialized during the lunch hour. She knew she was probably needed at the register or behind the candy counter, but she didn't care. She was going on break and God help the poor soul who tried to stop her.

She was glad that the loading docks were empty; she didn't want to have to pretend that everything was fine in front of anyone.

She kicked over a blue milk crate , plunking herself down on the uncomfortable plastic and began to cry.

"You okay ?" she looked up at the sound of his voice , her green eyes red and swollen from crying.

Usually , she would say yes, wipe her tears away , and give a sweet smile; but she didn't have the energy to pretend this time.

She shook her head no, not wanting to verbalize her pain and break out into an uncontrollable sob , showing Taz her " ugly cry face".

" Want to get out of here for a bit? I could take you for a ride on my bike, just to get your mind off of whatever it is that's bothering you."

She remained silent and still , her head bent down, gazing absentmindedly at her hands. Taz didn't say anything else to her ; instead ,he pulled up another milk crate and silently sat next to her, waiting until she was ready to talk.

She didn't know how many minutes passed with them just silently sitting and gazing out into the back lot of Kennedy's store. It was in these quiet moments that she would begin to relax and to feel at ease and calm.

After a while, she turned to face Taz. He put his hand on hers and just smiled. Ella stood up from her make shift seat , and jumped down from the loading dock to the cement parking area. She glanced over her shoulder to a bewildered Taz who was still seated.

" Are you coming , or would you rather I drove your bike around town instead by myself? "

Taz quickly jumped down , thrilled with the prospect of having Ella wrap her arms around his waist as he drove them around the back streets of Atlanta.

" You wear the helmet." He said handing it to Ella.

" Do I really have to ? " she pouted.

"Yes. If something happens, and we crash, I want you to be safe." He said as he tightened the strap under her chin.

" What will keep you safe then ? "

" Don't worry about me ", he joked as he slid in front on Ella , readying his keys and sunglasses.

Ella wrapped her arms tightly around his waist . Placing her head on his shoulder, near his left ear , she whispered ," but I do worry about you…. In fact, I think of you all the time".

Taz revved up the engine and drove away from the store.

Ella loved the freeness she felt; the wind blowing in her face, the sun shining down on them. Taz drove her down sides streets and alleyways, never driving too fast or recklessly. She had never noticed how beautiful Atlanta was in the afternoon or the way the sunlight made the red dirt shine like rubies. The sweet smell of magnolias and fresh cut grass filled the air; relaxing her completely.

Taz turned to bike down Serene St , toward the park located at the end. Driving slowly, he stopped the bike next to an expansive lawn strewn with huge oak trees and wild flowers.

" I like this place. I come here sometimes when I just want to be alone and think ."

" I can see why , it's beautiful ". Ella said as she removed the helmet , running her fingers through her red curls. She was sure she had a serious case of helmet hair. She thanked God that she had curly hair. A simple shake of the curls, and they looked near decent.

She found a soft patch of grass underneath one of the trees and leaned back , closing her eyes in a moment of calm.

Taz joined her, his muscular frame preventing him from truly being comfortable.

" I'm so over everything , Taz " Ella spoke with her eyes still closed.

" I hate both of my step parents….I …. I Just wish my parents either stayed married to each other or remained single! It's as if their spouses have complete control over their minds! My dad usually defends me when my stepmom is being horrible, but now he always takes her side! And my mom just goes along with whatever Uncle Rhett says! I can't wait to go away to school and be away from them all !"

" You're just upset. You really don't want to go away from them all"

Ella turned her green eyes toward Taz in fury . " Don't you dare tell me what I feel ! You don't know anything about me or my family !"

"Well , tell me then"

He remained calm , which for some reason infuriated her more.

" My stepmother hates me because she hates my mom. She always calls her a whore or slut… right in front of me! I just want to kill her sometimes. And to make matters worse , my brother , who by the way , planning on MARRYING this Aimee girl; went all the way up north to college and left me at alone at home to deal with my sisters and brother ….and …. _him…_ my stepdad _,_ I mean."

Taz kept silent, letting Ella vent to him all of her frustrations.

" I just don't trust him." She said quietly, almost as if she were talking to herself. " My mom is somehow blind and thinks it won't happen again, but I know better. It's like Mammy says, a leopard never changes his spots !

And now I'm leaving too … leaving her … alone… with no one to take care of her. He'll just hurt her again; I know he will… Bonnie would probably even help him… she hates our mom for some reason".

" Hurt your mom ?" Taz quietly asked.

" Yes. She's not as strong as she seems"

Ella was quiet for a bit, her green eyes misty and far away. When she spoke, her voice was calm and filled with emotion.

"I had a baby brother that died, you know, before Gerry or Cat were born. His name was Rhett…Rhett Jr…. We were going to call him R.J." Ella said as she turned her eyes away from Taz's gaze. "He was perfect; only tiny. I never even got to touch him", she whispered; choking back the tears that fell every time she spoke of the brother she never got to know.

She continued, expunging herself from the sadness , picking at the blades of grass near her, "It was his fault he died."

" Your stepdad's ?"

"Yes! " she raged . " He fought with my mom , saying horrible things to her at the top of the stairs. He's the reason she fell. He's the reason R.J. was born too early. He CAUSED his death! "

Ella hugged her knees to her chest, hiding her face in the space between them, and cried.

Taz said nothing. Instead he placed his large hand over her small one and waited until she was calm.

"Ella, look at me." " You're the nicest person I know and anyone who can't appreciate that is just plain stupid. Right now, your step parents seem like assholes , but they won't always be …. and even if they are , screw ' em; you don't need ' em for nothin' anyway. And as for your mom, I never met her, but if she's anything like you, I'm pretty sure she'll be fine when you go away to college."

Looking into her eyes , he tucked a rebellious red curl behind her ear.

" I don't think you have any idea just how wonderful you truly are"

Ella trembled as his fingers brushed alongside her cheek. She could feel her heart begin to race and her cheeks flush. She could only hope that Taz didn't notice.

" Ella …. What…what would you say if I asked if I could kiss you ?"

Ella could now audibly hear her breath become ragged. She had to gain some sort of composure. If she was this affected by his touch , she might just have a full blown panic attack if he kissed her." Was this what falling in love feels like ?" , she wondered.

She demurely raised her eyes to him. Green eyes staring into blue. She was falling for this boy….falling hard...

" I'd say…..what took you so long?"


	9. Be happy

" Where is she ? ", he wondered to himself. "How is it after coming here once a month for the past twelve years, she still managed to be late 80 percent of the time?". His wife's constant tardiness, especially in times like these, would have once driven him to seething anger, but now, he just sat back and relaxed , observing the various couples and people in the room. Maybe his daughter was right , maybe he was , as she said , " going soft".

Across from him sat a young couple – probably in their first few years of marriage.

The woman shifted anxiously in her seat , fingering through the pages of a magazine- obviously nervous. He noticed that she was quite pretty: in a fresh , youthful kind of way.

Her blonde hair stuck out to him the most ; the strands of gold and yellow caught his eye as they glistened with each movement of her head. He couldn't help but notice the way she blushed when their eyes met.

"Oh yes, " he thought " I could have this woman if I wanted her". She was evidently young enough to be his daughter, but that never had seemed to matter. Even at his advanced age , he was still damned good looking , and he knew it. The young girl glanced up from her magazine to meet his gaze once again, quickly lowering her brown eyes and began to chew anxiously on her bottom lip. The man in her company was oblivious to this seductive exchange between them , and remained focused on the screen of his phone.

" You idiot . " He began a dialogue with the young man in his head," I could steal her away from you and you wouldn't even notice ."

Suddenly, something caught the man's attention and his eyes , which were before cemented to his phone, were now wide- eyed and starting at the figure entering the room.

"Don't look at me like that." She said as she walked past the man and sat down next to her husband. " I'm only ten minutes late."

Taking a deep breath and sighing, she ran her hand through her dark hair, smoothing the few rebellious curls back into place. She noticed the couple across from them and gave a quick smile.

He shook his head in amazement at his wife. She was still so unaware of the effect she had on people, especially men. She lent back in the chair, crossing her legs in a position that gave the man across from her a glimpse of the black garter strap that was holding up her stocking.

Forgetting that mere moments ago , he was eyeing up **_this_** man's companion, he glared at the young man with a look that unmistakably stated : _Don't even think about it_ .

Thankfully, the temptation to rip out the throat of the man ogling his wife, was removed as a middle aged women, holding a clipboard called out -" Mr. and Mrs. Bulter "

" Right this way" the woman ushered the couple towards Dilcey's door… as if they hadn't been here a million times already.

If anyone would have told Rhett Butler that he'd be a frequent visitor to a marriage counselor, he would have said they were crazy. He had always believed that therapy was a waste of time, and that therapists were liars and manipulators that made their money preying on the fears on simple minded people. He scoffed at men who willingly and tearfully bore their hearts and souls out in front of a stranger, saying that they should be ashamed of themselves for acting so much like a baby. No sir, Rhett Butler would never have anything to do with that nonsense….. that is , until he married Scarlett.

He thought back to what had brought them here in the first place …. all those years ago

 _She made sure she would be there before him. She was acting against her attorney's advice of not engaging with Rhett today. Her uncle Henry had sternly warned her that if she wanted Rhett to agree to her terms on visitation and child support, she had to try to APPEAR to be conciliatory. He knew that his niece was wont to fits of sometimes violent anger, and thought the best course of action in keeping her sweet natured façade intact was for her to steer clear of Rhett until AFTER the divorce papers were signed and filed._

 _She didn't care. She needed to speak to him before he had time to securely fasten his mask of anger and indifference, to catch him when he was off guard, and forced to listen to her._

 _She gazed out of the window of the mutually agreed upon meeting place, nervously twisting and turning her wedding band. She didn't know why she still wore it. She had long ago banished her massive engagement ring to a small box in the back of the master bedroom closet, but for some reason, she could not part with her wedding band. Something about that simple band of gold touched her. Her engagement ring , with all its pretention and gaudy setting, was chosen to make others jealous; something to rub in the faces of everyone who always thought of her as white trash. But the simple wedding band reminded her of the love and friendship that had once been between she and Rhett._

 _She loved Rhett, she knew she did. But after all that had happened, she didn't think she could live with loving him. Nothing between them was ever easy , and their separation and divorce was no exception….especially now_

 _She was so lost in her train of thought that she didn't even hear him enter the room._

 _" Scarlett! Why are you here so early ?"_

 _He wasn't prepared for this. He needed some time to prepare for seeing her. Throughout their separation, he avoided her; always choosing to exchange Bonnie in her absence- usually delivering and receiving her in the care of Mammy instead of his wife. He didn't trust himself to be in her presence too long. The mere sight of her made him weak; either leaving him wanting to grovel at her feet and beg for forgiveness or kill her._

 _Of all days - today he had to meet with her…. alone. Their last true encounter was almost two months ago … and well… that didn't end well at all. It was after that meeting that the death knell rang for their marriage; the deciding factor in their assuredness that a divorce was the only true option._

 _He knew he would see her today , but his expectations were nothing like he imagined. He thought that she would appear armed with her high priced attorney, looking smug and poised. He assumed that she would be on full display as well ,with makeup spackled onto her face and perhaps wearing a dress that hugged all the right curves , showing him what he would be missing. The woman before him was none of those things._

 _She was solemn and not proud. He could see that she had been crying—real tears – not the fake ones she used to get her way with idiots like Ashley Wilkes._

 _She was dressed in loose fitting beige slacks and a plain deep orange blouse, covered by a simple grey sweater. Her hair, that he had assumed would be done in mass of tantalizing, seductive curls, was instead pulled back into a loose low ponytail, framing her lovely bare face; that void of make-up revealed the freckles he loved- and she hated._

 _He realized how pale she was, noticing that her eyes looked as bright as stones of jade against her complexion. " She truly does not look well" he thought to himself – a thought that ripped his heart out._

 _He wished he have seen her as he had imagined rather than like this. He could have handled her presence if she were her typical indifferent self, but here as she was, looking so young and vulnerable , he knew he was at her mercy._

 _For a moment, he thought that perhaps this was her plan- to appear to be despondent; a little performance of sorts intended to squeeze more money out of him. But he knew that Scarlett, not being the most observant person, would have never thought of, or would have had the ability , to carry out such a deceptive plan. He knew that her plan of choice would have been one of seduction….never this._

 _" I need to talk to you ." she quietly said . " Before everyone comes in and things become hectic."_

 _She looked him directly in his eyes. There was no deceit or what he referred to as her "Southern Belle simple " in her voice. If he didn't know any better , he'd say she was being sincere…. But he knew her better…. At least he thought he did._

 _Before he could interject with a nasty comment , one that would no doubt expose her nefarious plan , she continued._

 _" First, I want to say that I have already signed the papers today. I told you before that I think a divorce is our best option , and I meant it. That being said , I need to tell you something , something that in no way will prevent the divorce from going through as planned. I still do not want alimony or a ridiculous amount in child support either, so please don't assume this is some trick to do so. "_

 _It was if she could read his mind. Maybe she knew him better than he thought she did._

 _" You remember our last meeting ? The last time we went sailing and knew that there was no way to repair our marriage?" then almost whispering ... "The one where we finally decided to get divorced ? "_

 _He nodded, unsure of where this was going._

 _She inhaled deeply , steadying herself for what she was about to tell him. Licking her lips and squaring her shoulders , she sat up straight in her chair; a move he knew meant that she needed all the courage she could muster to tell him what she was about to say._

 _" I'm pregnant " she exhaled ._

 _" As I said , I have already signed the papers … I just thought, well… I thought you have the right to know. This doesn't change anything; it only proves that our entire marriage was based on lust and passion and nothing else."_

 _Once again, she took in a deep breath of air . " I'm keeping the baby, Rhett. I don't expect you to be truly involved in it's life .. considering everything and I don't want extra money either . The amount we agreed upon for Bonnie is more than enough for six children, let alone two."_

 _She continued , "I'm only six weeks along , so if you want a paternity test or anything like that, you'll have to wait a couple of months. I'm due the first week of April, and if you wish, I'll keep you updated as my pregnancy progresses. "_

 _He stood there as if he were anchored to the ground._

 _That boat ride … of course he remembered._

 _During their separation, he and Scarlett were constantly fighting, hurling awful comments at one another – something witnessed too often by Bonnie. He didn't want his daughter to think he hated her mother, so as a show of solidarity for the sake of his child, he suggested that he and Scarlett take the boat out in the morning and go sailing for a bit._

 _The boat ride started well enough. Neither of them were too talkative, only commenting on the weather or the dolphins swimming alongside the boat._

 _Along the way, Scarlett began to silently cry and through her tears, told Rhett that she knew it was over between them and they were only prolonging the inevitable. As she bravely turned her back to him , looking out into the expanse of the ocean, he knew just how much he needed and loved her…so much so that he didn't want to let her go._

 _He knew he had too – their life together was a nightmare, so terrible that love would not be enough to fix it..… but knowing that something has to be done , and actually doing it, are two different things._

 _Standing next to her , he intertwined his fingers with hers._

 _She gently turned herself around and embraced him in a way that told him she was giving up….She was letting him go ._

 _He lifted her chin with his hand to look into her eyes. And with complete abandonment, he kissed her._

 _As the kiss continued, evident that it was leading to something else, she broke away from him._

 _" Rhett stop. We can't…. I'm not on the pill anymore… I… I stopped when you left ….when we ..separated…"_

 _" I don't care ", he said as he pulled her to him , kissing her passionately, and letting the chips fall where they may._

 _She had warned him. She made it clear to him that any intimacy between them could lead to a pregnancy. He was the one to continue despite that information. This was his fault. This baby was not a trap._

 _He still stood silent before her, searching for the right words to say._

 _" Well , that's it." She said as she gathered her purse and prepared to exit out of his life forever._

 _Before walking out the door, she stopped , turned around to face him ,and said , " Be happy Rhett. I truly wish you peace and happiness… I really do ."_

 _He was the one not to sign the papers that day. Instead he persuaded Scarlett to prolong their separation until after the baby was born._

 _She was reluctant to do so, but acquiesced as long as Rhett agreed to her terms that they continued to live separately….and that there would be no physical intimacy between them._

 _They started slow… only meeting once or twice every two weeks to talk about the kids, her pregnancy, or work. He started to let his guard down , exposing to her his heart fully for the first time. She was too exhausted emotionally, mentally, and physically, to do anything except disclose hers as well._

 _They didn't make declarations of love to one another , but instead found themselves becoming friends again. Certainly, there was temptation to break their agreed upon rules , but they never did._

 _Six weeks before their baby's birth, they agreed to try and make their marriage work. They both swore that there would be no infidelity between them – emotional or physical, that they would be honest with each other, not letting anger or jealousy warp their conversations, and lastly , that they would meet with a marriage counselor on a regular basis to work through their painful past._

Dilcey Porkington was a no nonsense therapist who could not be manipulated by Rhett or bullied by Scarlett. She was blunt with them, making them both own up to their past bad behavior, and face the pain they had caused each other. She supported them both as they finally allowed themselves to grieve together for the death of their son and tirelessly guided them as they faced the biggest obstacle in their marriage … Belle and Ashley.

Actually, Dilcey considered them to be her greatest success story.

Rhett sat on the overstuffed couch that was opposite the chair Dilcey useually occupied. He noticed that Scarlett , although seated next to him , chose to position her body away from him.

" So it's going to be one of those sessions" he thought to himself. One of the sessions where they would both leave upset and angry, marinating in their anger for the rest of the day , and exploding at each other at night…..but after their fight ….. when their passionate anger was channeled into something more pleasurable …..that….. made the whole spectacle worth it.

Dilcey sat opposite the couple , immediately noticing Scarlett's tense body language. " So , how's everything been since the last time we met ? ".


	10. Embracing time

Rhett sat an appreciated the quiet calm that was Dilcey's office. The straight lines and simple colors were a pleasing and welcome change to that of his own home ; his own " architectural horror ", as he so often referred to it. Relinquishing the total design of his home to his wife, was one decision Rhett truly regretted. Her sense of style was not just lacking ….. it was completely nonexistent. The only criteria a piece of furniture, drapery, or art need meet to be included in his home , was that it was ridiculously expensive. The result was a home that was a jumble of styles , pairings, and colors. He really couldn't complain . He was well aware of her decoration skills - or lack thereof - well before they were married; her handiwork being quite visible in the home she shared with Frank.

The pair hadn't met with Dilcey in a few months. Ella's graduation and the entire fiasco with the after party coupled with Wade's sudden engagement announcement had thwarted their typically scheduled monthly meeting time, causing Rhett to now appreciate the time spent in this soothing environment.

" I haven't seen you two in a while. How's everything been ?" Dilcey asked with a smile.

Scarlett's strained body language spoke volumes even though she remained verbally silent.

Rhett spoke up , piercing the tense silence with a terse ," Fine…Everything's been fine".

Scarlett released her withheld breath in frustration . " That's not true. Rhett's version of the truth is warped by misconceptions aimed at self-preservation….as usual…. Things are not well at all ."

She leaned forward, her arms crossed defiantly across her chest. " Our life …. Is a complete …."

"Piece of shit ?", Rhett finished her sentence for her.

Scarlett glanced over to her husband. " I was going to say mess, but since you've said it first , shit works just as well. "

" How so ? " Dilcey asked as she wrote notes down in her blue journal.

That blue journal…. Scarlett so wanted to get her hands on the notes Dilcey had written over the years about them in it. She could picture it now :

 ** _Scarlett Butler – loving, Kind, and patient wife, so horribly deceived by husband :a gorgeous southern belle, appearing to be only 25_**

 ** _Rhett Butler – lying, cheating, asshole : undeserving of the aforementioned goddess of beauty that is his wife, appears to be a senior citizen_**

She smiled at the thought before continuing ..

" Ella graduated" she said with a hint of sadness in her voice .

She knew she be happy and excited for her eldest daughter , but she couldn't help succumb to the pain she felt each time she thought about the limited time Ella would be living at home or recalled the slow process in which Ella's belongings began being nestled into carboard boxes , destined for either storage or her new apartment near campus.

She was extremely proud of Ella though; many people , herself included – she shamefully admitted to herself - , did not think Ella, with her ADHD barely regulated with even the strongest of medication , would have come this far academically. She had defied the odds, and now with her recently acquired driver's license, was ready to leave the nest to set on her own life adventures.

Her Ella, her sweet baby Ella, her little red headed shadow….it was crushing Scarlett to let her go.

Dilcey listened , nodding her head in understanding. A mother herself, she understood the pain Scarlett felt. Her Pricilla , a close friend of Bonnie Butler, was still foolish and immature ; a few years away from leaving for college , but Dilcey could not even imagine her home without her being in it.

" How does that make you feel ? " Dilcey asked Scarlett, who casting her eyes downward, poorly disguised the tears filling her eyes.

Scarlett attempted to swallow her tears before answering. She was such an emotional mess these days ; and she hated it. She knew she wasn't pregnant (thank God Rhett had agreed to a vasectomy after Gerry was born) and it wasn't time for her period : so she had concluded that the only other explanations were that she was gearing up for a mental breakdown or experiencing the early onset of menopause…. Given the two choices , she hoped for the mental breakdown..

" I'm fine" she lied .

Dilcey asked her again , this time her voice softer . " Scarlett, how does this make you feel ?"

Scarlett looked up , her green eyes overflowing with tears. " I feel HORRIBLE about it ! I'm losing her Dilcey.. LOSING her! She's going away , moving away…..and It kills me! …. IT KILLS ME when I think of her not being home with us ….when I think of her room empty.. her chair at dinner , vacant. Not having her there …. Will be too much for me ", she said through her tears. "She's my heart Dilcey… I don't think I will ever get over this."

She then softly added , " It's all my fault….it's my fault my children want to get away."

" Scarlett " Dilcey calmly stated " None of this is your fault - we've been through this before. And you will get through this. You've gotten through much worse before"

Scarlett squared her shoulders with a newfound strength. " You're right Dilcey. It isn't my fault; it's Rhett's ".

Rhett jerked his head around to face his wife. " How in the hell is this my fault ?".

Wiping the bits of smeared eye makeup off her face , she glared at her husband. " You don't even TRY with Wade and Ella ! You know your relationship with them is not what it should be , and you never even try to repair it. Don't you see that they want to leave because of you ? Because of what happened between us ? They can't forget what happened, and they can't forgive you… and you make zero effort to change that! "

" Scarlett, I cannot make them embrace me like they used to. They're both adults ; they can't be cajoled into having a relationship with someone. If they hate me, then so be it ."

Dilcey sat silently observing the exchange between the two of them, writing sporadic notes in her journal.

" They loved you once Rhett, remember? Wade thought you were greatest man alive and Ella thought of you as a second father"

" I loved them too " he said sorrowfully. He did. He loved the two of them immensely. He never thought of them any differently than Bonnie in those early years. In his opinion back then, he had not one, but three children. It didn't matter that they did not share his last name, Ella and Wade were his children too.

Scarlett furrowed her brows at him. For someone so intelligent, he could be quite ignorant at times.

" I know this is hard for you to grasp Rhett , but they will always love me best. I am their mother and when they witnessed what went on between us, they naturally took my side and saw you as the villain. You cannot blame them for that, they were children. But you, as the ADULT, should have addressed these issue with them long ago and tried to repair the relationship. Instead, you couldn't bring yourself to talk to them about it ; your pride and shame forced you to push it under the rug thinking that if you ignored it , all the anger and hatred they felt would vanish, that the more THINGS that you BOUGHT them would make them love you again. Well, it didn't work out that way, I knew it wouldn't : which is why I tried to tell you over and over again throughout the years , and now they just want to get away…. from BOTH of us ."

Dilcey looked up from her notepad." Rhett, how do those accusations make you feel ? Do you agree with them ?"

He felt as though he were punched in the stomach and the air had been knocked out of him. Of course he knew why Wade and Ella felt this way. Scarlett **was** right, it was his fault. He knew they loathed him and he knew the reason why , but he was too scared and ashamed to even mention it to anyone, much less talk about it with his stepchildren.

" It makes me feel ashamed…. And guilty…. I agree with everything Scarlett said. They've seen terrible things , things that no child should see. "

Although Scarlett and Rhett had long ago worked through this part of their past, the trauma it caused the children was never discussed. Dilcey didn't want to push the couple too far in the beginning, instead focusing on the damage caused by infidelity and loss; knowing all the while that in time they would have to work through the uncomfortable issue of the way their actions and decisions had affected their children.

The look on Scarlett's face told him that, she too, hated reliving this part of their past. Like him, she would never forget it. And although she forgave her husband long ago, part of her still harbored anger and resentment. Some wounds are just too deep.

v

The Butler marriage was one that could only be described as unique. The couple had so hastily married, it was a great shock to all who knew them. To the outward observer, they truly seemed to hate one another. So when the most distinguished residents of Georgia began receiving wedding invitations to the nuptials of Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler, they were aghast.

But then, soon after the wedding, things seemed to soften between the couple , they seemed almost as if they were in love. People began to think that maybe they would work out after all . Scarlett was assuredly happier … and nicer, and Rhett walked as if he were on cloud nine.

Yet, soon after Bonnie was born, a tense atmosphere began to encircle the Butler mansion on Peachtree street. Rumors began swirling around town suggesting infidelity on both of their parts and of domestic violence in the home.

Then , during the same time their time their marriage was teetering on the precipice of disaster, right before the terrible events that caused the current dissension in the relationship between Rhett and his step- children, something so traumatic happened that pushed their marriage over the edge, something so devastating that Scarlett's world came crashing down , wounding her with a fissure so deep , that she would never fully recover.

v

Through the years, Melanie Wilkes had turned from a hated adversary into a confidant and ultimately, into that of a friend. This change came slowly, taking years for the two women to begin to understand and appreciate each other for who they were. But the change did come; and the two women, who were so completely different in every physical and emotional way, created between them a relationship that was so much deeper than that of just friends.

In Scarlett's life only she had only ever relied on two people; Mammy …. And Melanie. Melanie, with her sweet natured, considerate self, was the one person she could always count on, the one person who could talk her down from a murderous rage aimed at her ex-husband or some other foe, the one who -much to Scarlett's annoyance-pointed out the positives that could be found in every situation, the one who never let Scarlett feel sorry for herself, and the one person who loved her for the spoiled , prissy, bitch that she could be.

Of course, they had disagreements. Like all sisters, there were moments of frustration; and as is so often the way with sisters , a tearful apologetic reunion soon followed.

Even the fact that Scarlett had been madly in love with Ashley for years , continuing even after his marriage to Melanie, was now a common source of amusement for the pair. Their aunt Pitty was always pushed into one of her swooning spells by the ribald verbiage that the two would use about that time when she was in their presence.

 _" I don't think Ashley would have known what to do , married to such a hard headed floozy like you" Melanie teased as she and Scarlett attempted to set up Netflix on their Aunt's new smart TV._

 _" I'm not hard headed; I'm right… Uncle Peter, tell Pollyanna over here that the T.V has to be set on Alt for this to work !" she said as she playfully shoved Melanie, swatting her with the remote. " Girls, " their uncle Peter, usually so patient with his favorite nieces, declared in frustration, "I don't know what the heck it has to be set on. All these new buttons just confuse me. I already tole' Pitty this was a waste of money."_

 _" Pity! What channel this thing need to be on ? "he yelled up the stairs to his already flustered wife._

 _" You'll love Netflix Uncle Peter" Melanie sweetly cooed . " And , you can watch all the dirty movies you want when Auntie goes to bed … and she'll never know…" added Scarlett._

 _" Scarlett speaks from experience , of course" laughed Melanie._

 _Pitty hastily came downstairs to offer no assistance whatsoever, and in Scarlett's opinion, just got in the way._

 _" Scarlett darling, did you read the instructions? "_

 _" I don't need to read the instructions Auntie , I know how to do this, I've done it on my own television… which is what I've been trying to tell Melly for hours !" Scarlett said as she fumbled with the electric outlet located behind the massive flat screen._

 _" I told you uncle Peter, she did it to set up those dirty channels without Rhett knowing….." Melanie said in mocked indignation._

 _Melanie, growing slightly impatient with Scalrlett's reluctance to accept any guidance, noticed a yellow cord from the cable box and estimated that it must belong in the yellow port on the side of the TV. When she quickly plugged it in, before Scarlett could notice, a small jolt of electricity was sent to her tiny hands._

 _Jumping back, she tightly gripped her tingling fingers with her hand. Pitty reacted in sheer despair as if Melanie had just been severely injured while Scarlett just laughed ._

 _" You better watch it Melly, because if you electrocute yourself , I'll be forced to leave Rhett and marry Ashley ;whether he can handle me or not. "_

 _Melanie laughed at the absurdity of it. If ever two people were mismatched, it was Scarlett and Ashley._

 _" Okay, maybe not marry him " she agreed " but I'd be forced to at least give him the best twenty minutes of his life " she said with a playful wink._

 _Pitty began fanning herself in moral indignation. " Girls ! Honestly! " ,she admonished._

 _" You wouldn't even be able to do that" Melanie laughed " Twenty minutes ? More like ten. "_

 _Melanie, Scarlett, and their Uncle Peter began laughing so hard, that the quest to link Netflix to the TV was all but forgotten._

 _" Peter ! Don't encourage them ! " was Pitty's final reprimand to her mischievous nieces and urging husband._

v

This was one of the last happy memories the two women would share together. Little did they know that in less than two years, these two women, the two who had in years, never gone a single day without some form of communication with each other, who shared every minute detail of each other's lives, who had suffered and sacrificed so much together, would be forced to separate.

When Melanie was diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer, it was so sudden that many people refused to accept is as reality. Ashley certainly didn't want to think about it, preferring to instead live in his own created world of books and gentility ,and Beau was far too young to understand. Her sister in laws, Honey and India ,did little more than express how sorry they were for her , and her Aunt Pitty had too childish of a mind to comprehend the severity of it all.

But there was Scarlett; she always had her. It was Scarlett who stood by her side, encouraging her to be strong and fight. Scarlett went with her to every doctor's appointment, every chemo treatment, every procedure; she was the one who kept track of the medicine she was taking, setting aside which pills needed to be taken at what time on what day; and when Melanie was just too tired to keep going, Scarlett was there to push her , in her typical headstrong way , to not give up.

To others, especially Ashley and Beau, Melanie never showed any indication of her fears or of the sadness she felt when she thought about the moments she knew she would miss . She acted as though cancer was just another little setback in life that she would easily overcome.

But to Scarlett , she let her fears about death and pain become known. She told her she was afraid to die, afraid to leave her little boy without his mother, afraid to abandon her tender-hearted husband. She was scared of the physical pain she would assuredly endure and of the complete loss of her independence.

And when her hair began to fall out in large clumps, she was consumed by terror for the first time in her young life; clinging to Scarlett as if she were her only life raft in the turbulent and engulfing waters of desperation she was in. Scarlett soothed her fears, vowing to never, even for once, leave her side; letting her know she would not go through this alone.

And as the months passed, and Melanie's condition became worse and worse, Scarlett practically lived at the Wilkes' home; taking care of Melanie in every way she needed. When Melanie was too weak to even perform basic personal matters such as bathing or going to the restroom, Scarlett helped her, never once making her feel uncomfortable or humiliated. When she couldn't bring herself to eat even the smallest bite of food, Scarlett would give her miniscule bites of food for hours, not caring how long it would take to get at least some nutrition in her sick little body. She entertained her everyday with the town gossip or told her the ribald jokes she had heard from Rhett; keeping her company for hours, lying with her in bed watching old Molly Ringwald movies or painting her fingers and toes, savoring each moment they had left together. Sometimes they would cry together, realizing for the first time , just how short life truly was or just spend hours reliving old memories until those tears of sadness changed into tears of laughter.

That last day … the last day that Melanie was able to speak to her, Scarlett found her that morning relaxing in her bedroom , seated in a large glider placed near the window.

She looked awful , her skin almost appearing to be grey . Her sunken in cheekbones reached almost all the way to her big beautiful brown eyes, causing her to look much older than what she was. She was so thin too. Always petite, she was now so tiny that she had now begun to physically slip away.

Their last hope, the new combination of chemotherapy and medication, the prayed for miracle worker, wasn't working - there was little else they could do to save her. The doctors had advised Ashley that they could only make her comfortable for the time she had left. She was dying ….. and she knew it

Melanie's face was turned away from her as she entered the room, causing Scarlett to panic at the thought that she was dead. " Melly ? ", Scarlett said softly.

Melanie turned to face her and gave a weak smile.

Just the image of her like this, her best friend and most treasured companion - the one person who loved her despite all her bad behavior- looking so sick and weak , was hard for Scarlett to take in. She knew that Melly would be leaving her soon, but she refused to think about it. She rather push the thought away, vowing to think about it tomorrow.

She continually reminded herself that she had to be strong for Melly, that Melly needed her now more than ever ; but in all honesty, she too was collapsing inwardly in despair. She needed Melly, she was so much more than a best friend ever could be, and the thought of living the rest of her life without her by her side was proving to be the one thing that would overtake the determined and resilient Scarlett O' Hara.

"Guess who I ran into at the store?" Scarlett said in a jovial voice while clearing the books, cups, and medicine strewn along the bureau and side table, trying to lighten the mood in the room. " You remember Maybelle's weird looking husband?… the one with those pants that look like ladies' red flannel underwear ?"

Melanie silently turned to face the window again. She had been sequestered away in her bedroom for what had seemed like an eternity and missed the sunshine desperately. Scarlett noticed the way Melanie closed her eyes, enjoying the sun's rays on her face; taking in what she could of the beautiful spring weather.

"Come on" Scarlett said kneeling before her. " I'm taking you outside ".

" But the Dr. said I couldn't "was Melanie's weak reply.

" Melanie Wilkes, when was the last time you knew me to follow anyone's instructions?" she said with a smile.

" How will I get downstairs.. I don't think… I just can't ….make it Scarlett.."

" That's why I'm going to carry you" Scarlett said as she easily lifted up Melanie's small frame from the chair.

Melanie laughed at Scarlett's suggestion. "You can't carry me !"

" I'll have you know I lug Wade's big butt up the stairs to bed most nights . If I can carry him , I can surely carry you "

"Let me carry you for once", Scarlett thought; "for all the times in my life that you carried me."

Scarlett was shocked at how light Melanie was. She knew from her gaunt appearance that she would be easy to carry, but the actual weight of her body mass in her arms stunned her. She felt as if she were carrying two-year-old Bonnie.

Scarlett lamented on the unfairness of it all. Melly was the best person she knew, the best she'd ever known in her entire life . Why was this happening to her? Why was she the one suffering through this? She, of all people , didn't deserve this .

Once outside, she gently placed her on the plush chaise that sat nestled under the large oak tree in her beloved garden.

Instantly Melanie let out a sigh of contentment. The crisp spring air was mixed with the sweet smell of fresh cut grass and honeysuckle, flowers she had planted with Beau the Spring before. She breathed the air in with big gulps, savoring the warmth of the sun on her body while listening to the soft rustle of leaves and the sounds of children playing in the distance.

Scarlett, not wanting to interrupt her peaceful moment, quietly sat in the chair beside her. She soon felt the wetness of tears falling onto her cheeks ; the reality of Melanie's imminent passing was , at this moment, more tangible than it had ever been. There was no ignoring it now, no thinking about it tomorrow…. Melanie was dying.

She quickly moved to wipe her tears away, before Melanie could take notice and become upset…but she couldn't. She couldn't stop them from falling.

"Scarlett?" Melanie quietly said as she reached for her hand.

The dam of emotion, the ocean of sadness that Scarlett had been pushing back, began to run over. " How do I live without you , Melly ? How can I possibly go on without you in my life? I just can't …. I can't lose you.. I won't survive. I don't think I could live my life without you in it "

Melanie smiled tenderly, her own tears spilling down her cheeks and nose she gripped Scarlett's hand as tightly as she could. " You are the strongest person I know ,Scarlett O'Hara. Stronger than even you realize. "

"I know that I'm going to die soon, that I'm never going to see my son fall in love, graduate from college, or get married. I'll never grow old with my husband, hold my grandbabies…. or witness the day you actually listen to someone else's advice….But I can handle that, I can handle all of that because I know that you'll still be here when I'm gone. You, with your typical hard headed self, will be here keeping everything together, being a second mother to Beau, making sure Ashley survives, keeping Honey and India in check, driving Aunt Pitty crazy... you'll still be here. And because of that, a part of me will be here too… Don't you see, you're in me Scarlett and I'm in you.

I wish you could see yourself the way I see you; strong, smart, and kind. I'm glad things happened the way they did. That Charlie met you, that you became pregnant with Wade like you did, and even for your initial obsession with Ashley. It's because of those things that I was given one of the best gifts I had ever received … it's because of those things that I met you … met my sister.. And ,I'm not really leaving you when you think about it. I'll be the first person you see when you open your eyes in heaven…. I promise you, I will be there waiting for you"

It was in that moment that the two women who had first been filled with preconceived feelings of hatred and disdain for the other , who had for years loved the same man, the pair who would be eventually united in the bond of chosen sisterhood, embraced for the very last time; understanding that they would soon be separated by death, and that their bond, that unshakable connection consisting of the force of Scarlett O' Hara and the gentleness of Melanie Hamilton would soon be no more.

 _To be continued( this chapter continues )…. AND REMEMBER , TO COMMENT IS TO LOVE : )_


	11. The silver lining

Thank you so very much for the comments. Comments make me want to write more! To the commenter who think that Scarlett and Rhett should not be together: They wouldn't be Scarlett and Rhett without drama - and what marriage lasting 15 + years is without ups and downs? ;)

WARNING – CONTAINS MATURE THEMES and TRIGGERS - (nothing graphic but may still be triggers for some – If these themes bother you , please skip the italicized part )

Scarlett felt better after her cry fest in Dilcey's office. And though the massive yolk of sadness and regret still lay heavily across her neck, the weight of it was temporarily lifted.

She should be used to this by now. Wasn't this the story of her life? Wasn't her life punctuated by periods of tragedy followed by brief moments of peace and tranquility? She briefly lamented over the drama that seemed to plague her since birth, and instead chose to bask in the temporary peace she felt in this moment.

They walked out of the counseling center hand in hand, Rhett's large, brown fingers intertwined with her slender, white ones. She felt him give her hand a small squeeze and raised her eyes to his face.

Lord, how she loved this man…..This infuriating , capricious , frustrating, hard- headed, and wonderful man.

Like most little girls, Scarlett fantasized about the day when her golden knight, clad in shining armor would rescue her- the damsel in distress- from her towering prison on the wrong side of the tracks in Georgia; whisking her away to a romantic existence where they would live happily ever after. Never once imagining that it wouldn't be the white knight who would steal her heart, it would instead be the debonair pirate captain that made her weak in the knees, rescuing her from her prison of shame and loneliness.

Once, when at a party, a fortune teller had told her that the love of her life would be a dark-haired man. Her reaction was typical Scarlett. She berated the woman, calling her a charlatan and fraud; screaming at her that she didn't even like dark – haired men.

As much as Scarlett hated to admit defeat, she had to accept that woman was right after all. A dark-haired man did capture her heart. He loved her with more intensity than she could ever imagine. More than she ever thought possible. And while it definitely couldn't be said that they lived exactly happily ever after, she couldn't imagine her life without her dark – haired pirate captain .

Her pirate captain, her caddish buccaneer.

The bright Georgia sun, raised high in midday, exposed to her, that her pirate captain, once virile and smooth, was indeed no longer physically the bold renegade that he once was. Without a doubt, he was still handsome - some would even say too handsome; but the tell-tale signs of living were increasing more and more as the years went by. His hair, once jet black with flecks of grey at the temples, was now more grey than black and the lines around his mouth and eyes were true indicators of the many smiles and frowns that had marred his face throughout his sixty years, making him appear more distinguished: and possibly even more irresistible to his wife. She didn't care how wrinkly he became or if he went completely bald or became overweight- what she feared the most about his increasing age was his complaints of chest pains, his high cholesterol numbers and raising blood pressure.

The thought of losing him, of him dying, was a thought that she refused to think about. She wasn't putting it off until tomorrow- as she often did when faced with an uncomfortable situation. She wanted to erase it from her mind completely.

He noticed his advanced age all too well himself. He didn't need his wife to constantly bring the subject up, all he had to do was look in the mirror. He could see that his stomach and arms were not as tight as they used to be - his washboard abdominal muscles were now long gone. But more than his physical changes that appeared on his body, the thing that bothered his the most was the increasing difficulty he had in keeping up with his children. There was no way he could be as the other fathers were; the ones who coached little league teams and served as cub scout leaders: he just wasn't physically able. He didn't have the energy to run bases with Gerry at his T ball practice or the stamina to learn about the latest studies on autism for Cat. And he certainly didn't have the strength to handle Bonnie. This realization caused him more worry than he liked to admit. He suspiciously eyed the other parents he would meet at his son's pre-school or at a God-forsaken kid birthday party that Scarlett would drag him to: always wondering what they thought of him— _Look at that dirty old man with his trophy wife and anchor babies_ \- he was certain that these were their thoughts.

And his wife- he was so much older than her. He had lost count of the times unknowing strangers had assumed she was his daughter and not his wife. Waiters and restaurant staff being the worst offenders.

 _"Here you are miss "they would say as they handed Scarlett her menu "And there you are, dad" , the smiling waiter would say as he handed a menu to Rhett._

Ashamedly he admitted that the age difference between he and Scarlett could even be felt and seen in their most intimate of moments. He cringed at the number of times his wife had tried to mislead him into thinking she was still satisfied by his performance in the bedroom, but he knew better. The worst thing about getting older was the increasing difficulty in which he had in maintaining an erection. _"Rhett, it's fine. Please don't stress about this. I'm still quite satiated by our sex life."_ She would say as he coward in shame in the fact that he was not able to be intimate with his wife as often or as long as he once could. She was a terrible liar, and if she couldn't fool him into thinking she hadn't spent an extra thousand or two on a new pair of shoes- or some other ridiculous feminine purchase, she surely couldn't successfully make him think she had an orgasm when he knew she didn't or that she wasn't bothered by the changes in the bedroom. This was the exact reason why his medicine bottle, filled with little blue pills, was fixated in their bathroom medicine cabinet…. Hidden of course behind his wife's numerous bottles of anxiety pills.

But he still worried. What if she found someone else? Someone younger who could fulfill her most primal desires? She was still young – barely even forty. She shouldn't have to be tied to an elderly man, well past his prime. She was so damn beautiful too. Everyone noticed it. Rhett saw how men – old and young alike - would gawk as his wife would walk past. Even his own brother, when filled with the liquid courage whiskey would provide- would make passes at her from time to time. Why should she waste her life with a decaying old man? How many times had he been told what a lucky man he was or that he'd better keep an eye on his wife, for another man may come in a scoop her away right from under his nose.

But then he would look at her. Look at her as she smiled at him with an expression of complete love. She had stood by his side throughout the toughest times of his life. She was always there; always supporting him. And for him, it had always been her. Even at their worst- when he lied to himself and her – lying and saying he no longer loved her- it was still her. Since their first conversation almost nineteen years ago, this raven-haired beauty was all his heart ever needed and wanted. He often felt he was undeserving of her love, he was responsible for so much of the tragedy she had suffered. Late at night he would watch her as she slept; her face peaceful and serene. He'd gently stroke her hair, fingering through the tendrils of curls as he thanked the good Lord for her.

He had once told her that she was a poison in his blood, destroying him from the inside slowly and completely. He was trying to hurt her by these words, never realizing how truthful they were.

She was in his blood.

Not as a poison, but as the lifeblood that kept him alive.

"You really didn't need to walk me to my car Rhett, I am perfectly capable of doing so on my own , you know."

Opening the car door for her, he made a grand gesture for her get in. As she slid onto the leather seats- that now felt like hot coals after being exposed so long to the hot Georgia sun, he leaned in to kiss her.

"What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't walk my gorgeous wife to her awaiting chariot?"

Raising her eyebrow at him in the tantalizing way that drove him crazy, she lent in close to him , her mouth almost touching his. "You sir, are no gentleman "she said, seductively thickening her Georgian accent. He took his right hand and brushed the back of his fingertips across the side of her neck and collarbone. "And you miss, are no lady" he softly retorted before kissing his wife once again.

She let her hand that was cupping the side of his face linger until he pulled away. "Be careful going home. We're in for some bad weather tonight. I just got an alert on my phone."

"Aye, Captain "she playfully teased as she pushed the ignition button to start to her car. "I'll see you at home…. And if you get there before me, do NOT give Gerry any soda, or you'll be the one giving him a bath at 3 am because he's wet the bed."

"I have no idea what you've talking about "he smiled "I love you; please keep your eyes on the road and not your cell phone. I'm serious Scarlett, pay attention to the road."

"I love you too" she said before reaching to close her door. She rested her head against the headrest, savoring the cool air for a moment as she watched Rhett walk back to his car.

Glancing at her phone before pulling out of the parking space, she noticed how little battery life she had left and fumbled with the white charging cord coming out of her center console to plug it in to charge. Her phone battery drained so quickly. Perhaps the abundant amounts of apps she downloaded was the culprit. There was the daily devotional that keep her sane and out of jail, the learning games and movies for Gerry, soothing sounds and pictures for Cat, and multiple methods for tracking Bonnie and Ella. Her phone rang - loudly disturbing her internal pondering.

 _"I'm a bitch, I'm a lover, I'm a child, I'm a mother "_ …. was playing instead of her usual basic ringtone.

"Bonnie…" she lamented.

Bonnie was forever adjusting the setting on her phone. The last time she gained access to the phone, she had changed it so that every time Scarlett tried to send a text, all the words changed to "shit" -

 _Hey, can you meet me at the office for 11?_

 _Shit_

 _Shit?_

 _Shit shit_

 _Scarlett?_

 _Shit!_

 _What's wrong?_

 _Shit shit shit shit shit_

 _Shit shit shit shit shit._

 _Are you having a stroke?_

 _SHIT!_

Then there was the time she made Siri address her as " smelly ass -"

Scarlett remembered how embarrassed she had been when after requesting Siri to locate a phone number for her, she replied, in her autotuned robot voice, with: _" Here's what I found , smelly ass "_ loudly enough for bystanders to hear.

Scarlett wished her daughter would show this much drive and effort in school, rather than in making her mother look like a fool.

She groaned as she saw Frank's name appear. He had been trying to reach her for two days. She had successfully avoided his repeated attempts at contact before, each time he given up after a while; but for him to call her repeatedly over the course of days, must mean that he really needed to talk to her. "What on earth could he possibly want? "she wondered as she debated if she should subject herself to Frank's inane prattle. She reluctantly pressed the answer icon on her phone.

"What Frank? What is so important that you need to talk to me so badly about?"

Frank's scratchy wheezing could be heard over the phone. Even the sound of his voice irritated her. "I need to see you. Can you come by the store for a few minutes?...It's about Ella."

Panic filled her chest. "Is she alright?! Did something happen to her ?!" she asked in rapid succession, not allowing him to even answer her. "I'm on my way!"

For the first time since owning her fancy Bentley, she utilized the full power of her six-cylinder engine as she flew through the streets of downtown Atlanta; ignoring stop signs and traffic lights along the way. Her haphazard parking job upon her arrival at the store took up two spots and blocked the poor driver of the Corolla parked next to her from pulling out of their parking spot due. She didn't care – right now, her mama bear instincts took over and God help the person who stood in her way. She pushed through the wooden doors of Kennedy's emporium with such force that they banged loudly against the metal framing of the display case that stood aside them.

She felt a pang of sadness as she took in the sight of the store. She made it a point to avoid walking in the store if she could help it. She had given so much of herself in the creation and establishment of Kennedy's. It was her blood, sweat, and tears that made it the success it was today. Even though she was the main shareholder in the store, she never interfered. She only retained ownership for Ella, never trusting that India wouldn't try something underhandedly to weasel her child out of what was rightfully hers.

She began to take inventory of what had become of what was once her jewel in commerce. The seasonal items should be the first thing the customers should see and the summer items needed to be front and center, not hidden in the back of store. Candy and small toys should be placed near the registers to tempt unruly children to beg and throw tantrums in the quest of acquiring them, not the expensive earrings and silver jewelry that were currently strewn across the check -out station -And the fudge: Kennedy's famous fudge – the smell of it should permeate the air, accosting the nostrils of each person who walked through the door-she couldn't even see it, much less smell it.

"Was that really necessary, Scarlett?" India hissed as she walked up to her.

Scarlett brushed past her without saying a word. She was in no mood to get into a verbal sparring battle with India. India seethed in anger as she watched her husband's ex-wife saunter through the store and into Frank's office as if she were the queen of Sheba. As much as she hated to admit it, she couldn't hold a candle to Scarlett -physically or mentally. This fact was only validated as India watched the heads of women and men alike turn in admiration of her mortal enemy.

"What's wrong" she demanded of her ex-husband, shoving the door open before sitting in the chair across from him. How she hated his office. Like everything with Frank, it unnerved her completely. He nodded toward his open office door, indicating that what they were about to discuss required complete privacy. Swiftly, she rose to close it and returned to her chair with an exasperated huff.

"Ella has been sneaking off on her breaks to be with a boy" he breathed out at her in one extended breath.

Scarlett furrowed her brows in confusion. What was the point of this?

"Is she pregnant ?!"

"No."

"Is she thinking of running off with him?"

"Not that I know of."

"What's the issue then?"

"She has a boyfriend, Scarlett ...and I'm afraid it's serious "

He had never experienced a time when Scarlett was speechless; and he assumed that her silence was due to her inability to comprehend what he had just told her.

"Are you telling me, that you had me drive all the way over here because Ella has a boyfriend?" she asked in total bewilderment.

"Yes! Don't you see the problem, Scarlett !?"

"Honestly, Frank, I don't. She'll be eighteen in a few weeks and it's normal for her to have a boyfriend at this age. When I was her age I was the mother of an infant. Actually, I'm surprised she waited this long. Rhett's been chasing Bonnie away from the boys for years now and she's only fifteen."

Her ran his hand through his hair, once a bright red and now completely grey. He wanted to yell at her that God forbid his daughter follow in the footsteps of her mother. "Scarlett, you more than anyone, should realize the danger that comes when a girl gets in too deep with a boy."

"Because I was one of those dirty little high school sluts that turned up pregnant at 16?"

"Yes…. I mean, no… I mean … You know what these young boys are capable of! Honestly, I'd think you'd show a little more concern …. You are her mother after all."

How dare he! Who was he to criticize her understanding of their daughter?! Hadn't she been the primary care-giver for her all her life? Wasn't it she who stood vigil at her bedside when she was sick? Wasn't it she that tarried through her limitations at school; endlessly fighting against a school system that wanted to label her "slow" or "mentally disabled "? Who was it that taught Ella her colors, numbers, shapes and how to read? Who could recall the names of Ella's friends, hobbies, teachers, and medical records? Who was the confidant privy to Ella's hopes and dreams – her biggest fears – of what she wanted out of life? It surely wasn't Frank!

She leaned forward to increase the severity of what she was about to say. She tried to remain calm, remembering that her list of available alibis were running short.

"You mean that I should warn her, based on my personal experience, that some desperate man may put something in her drink, causing her to lose consciousness and then have sex with her against her will ? "

"Scarlett…. please " , Frank pleaded.

"And then I should educate her on how horrible it would be if she wound up pregnant and be forced into marrying the scum that raped her?"

He covered his face in mortification and shame. This was the first time she had ever said that word out loud to him. That word …. **_rape_**. He hated himself for what he did; praying continually for redemption from the sin of committing that horrible act against the older sister of his fiancé ; for the sin and crime of forcefully taking her as she lay unconscious.

v

 _He was less than pleased when he was stationed at a navy base on the coast of Georgia. It was a true let down after spending three years in Hawaii, but when you're given orders, you just accept them. His spirits were somewhat lifted when he and some of his fellow soldiers from the base went out for a good time in downtown Atlanta._

 _They ended up at a local bar, one of those trendy places where you had to pay a cover to get in. The kind Frank never frequented. Frank was at least ten years older than the crowd in here, and decided upon entry that he would hate it here. The music was unbearably loud and the room was filled with smoke and the pungent odor of sick and alcohol. As he didn't want to appear boring or elderly to his shipmates , he decided that his only choice was to spend the time here sitting by the bar , drinking the cheap house beer they had on tap._

 _" This is the last time I go out with twenty-somethings " he thought to himself._

 _Out of the corner of eye he spotted a girl. She was young, very young – barely legal even and was dancing with a group of girls around the same age, spinning and gyrating in a manner that made It evident that she was drunk. From what he could see in the limited visibility available , he could tell that she was pretty , in a youthful, jovial way. Her hair was long and straight, falling mid length to her back. She was tall and lean with long legs and a small waist. He sat there just gazing at her body as she moved and swayed to the music, convinced that his voyeurism was veiled in the darkness …..and then , she rose her head and met his eyes with her own. Frank could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks and sweat beads form on his forehead as the eye contact continued._

 _She began walking up to him , stumbling a little as she came closer. He was sure that she was coming to berate him for being a creepy old guy getting off on girls young enough to be his daughter and desperately tried to conjure up an excuse for his perverted behavior._

 _"I thought I should introduce myself , since you've been undressing me with your eyes for a while now" she said leaning on the bar for support._

 _She held out her small hand to him, " I'm Suellen"_

 _He remained silent. Never once , in all of his life, had a woman so pretty as this come up to him –purposefully - with the intention of introducing herself._

 _" ….And you are ?... "she probed , unthwarted by his recent muteness._

 _"Sorry. Frank …my name's Frank."_

 _She was standing so close to him that he could smell the fragrance of her shampoo lingering in her strawberry blonde hair." Oh, how delicious she smells "he thought. For the last couple of months all that filled his nostrils was the musky odor of men confined in the small spaces of a Navy vessel. The clean, fresh scent of this slip of a girl was a welcome change._

 _He then observed how pretty she truly was. She was slender with an oval shaped face and deep set brown eyes that made her appear to be even younger than the twenty-one years she claimed to be. Her small mouth, which to some may have appeared to be too small for her face, he saw as perfect…. and completely kissable._

 _That meeting led to a dinner date the next weekend. That date led to many more… and after numerous dates and six months later…. a marriage proposal._

 _Three days after she had said yes, he met the illustrious older sister._

 _Suellen hadn't ever spoken much about her family; only that her mother had died when she was little and that she was the middle child of three girls. He had met her little sister a time or two, had brief encounters with her father and mammy, but he had never caught a glimpse of the eldest._

 _One evening as he walked up the steps to Suellen's family home, he heard the unfamiliar sound of a little boy's voice. He guessed that they were entertaining a family friend or relative as he was certain that there were no little children living in her home. He stuck his head through the unlocked front door and called out._

 _"Hello? Sue? Anybody home? It's me. "_

 _No one answered his call and he tentatively crossed the threshold of his fiance's home. He heard muffled voices coming from the back of the house and moved toward the familiar sound of Suellen's voice. He then felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. He had been hit with something … something hard and with force. He grabbed his shoulder as he looked for his unknown attacker._

 _"You dead. I's killed you" his would-be assassin proudly boasted. The little boy appeared to be three or four and had little resemblance to Suellen. He was a cute, freckled little guy - with a mess of chestnut colored hair and big brown eyes. He wondered who he belonged to. Before he could ask the little boy his name, Suellen rushed into the room, pulling the child away from him by the arm and yanking the rubber-band gun from his hand._

 _"Wade! You little shit! Don't shoot this at people!" she yelled._

 _His big brown eyes welled up with tears as he tried to pull his arm free. " You's hurting me aunt Sue. My arm is hurtin' " His cried grew louder as he sobbed out of pain and fear, twisting and turning his arm that was tightly held in his aunt's grasp._

 _His cries must have alerted someone upstairs, as a door was heard opening and closing followed by the pounding of another set of footsteps, sounding heavy and forceful as they absconded the broken and beaten white stairway in the front entry of the large home._

 _"Take your hands off my son, right now Suellen "_

 _The unmistakable southern drawl of a woman was heard, dripping heavily with sweetness yet smooth and stealthily serious._

 _Suellen threw the little arm loose, freeing the small boy to run for the safety of his mother._

 _"Mama…." He sobbed as he lifted his arms for his mother to pick him up; immediately wrapping his small arms around her neck and crying into her shoulder. "It's okay baby. It's okay, I'm right here… stop crying" she said in an attempt to soothe and placate her son. "Aunt Sue was just playing. She was just pretending to be the bad guy and grabbed your arm."_

 _He raised his eyes to meet his mother's "Really, mama?"_

 _"Yes, really … but it's time to wash up before dinner, so I'll have to get her for you ….. and I promise you ….. I'll get her good " , she said with a murderous glare and stealthy voice aimed at her sister._

 _Pleased with his mother's explanation, he bounced up the stairs to wash his hands and face before dinner, leaving the three adults in the room alone. His mother held up her finger as to indicate she demanded a momentary silence and glanced upstairs to be sure her son was out of earshot before walking calmly up to where Frank and Suellen stood._

 _"If you ever lay a hand on him again, I will break your fucking arm! What are thinking, grabbing him like that!? He's barely four years old, Suellen! "_

 _"Well, he doesn't listen at all Scarlett. He runs around this house like a lunatic! "Suellen seethed at her sister._

 _"And that's when you come get me. I will punish him. Not you!" She came up to her sister practically nose to nose. " I warn you, you better never , and I mean never, grab him like that again. Because if you do I promise, you WILL regret it. Do I make myself clear, Suellen?"_

 _The two women stared daggers at each other, their hatred for each filling the air. "Yes, Scarlett...whatever you say …."_

 _Scarlett lifted her head and walked past her sister, purposefully slamming into her shoulder as she did so._

 _"I suppose he acts that way because he doesn't have a father!" Sue loudly proclaimed for all to hear. Scarlett stopped in her tracks. She stood motionless for a moment, contemplating the various ways in which to murder her sister and wallowing in the truth of her statement about Wade's lack of a father. Her child did not have a father. He didn't even understand the meaning of the word. As hard as she tried, there were some areas in his life she was unable to fill._

 _Throughout the entire exchange, Frank remained silent. He didn't know how to respond to a situation like this. His Suellen, the one he loved and wanted to spend the rest of his life with wasn't mean or hateful, and she certainly didn't treat children like this. Frank loved children and would often daydream of the day he and Sue would be blessed with their own little bundle of joy. The shrill woman standing beside him made him contemplate his decisions._

 _And her sister…. He was transfixed on her. She was nothing like Sue physically at all. He wondered if they had different fathers- or mothers even, as he was unable to identify any familial resemblance in them. Suellen could be described as the fresh-faced girl next door – with her strawberry blonde hair and big brown eyes …but.… the sister - with her black curls and bewitching green eyes … she was the seductive temptress you fantasized was shaken from his thoughts by the sound of Suellen's voice as she berated her older sister._

 _"I fucking hate Scarlett"_

 _"So, her name's Scarlett…. Fitting "he thought._

 _"She thinks she's so great. She' nothing more than a whore with a little bastard son. She doesn't scare me at all."_

 _"Scarlett…" he repeated in his head._

 _For the next couple of months, Frank saw Scarlett sporadically, never more than for a few minutes at a time. But each time he was in her presence, he took in as much of her as he could. He had never, in all his life, seen someone so beautiful. Thankfully she was unaware of his prolonged glances and never paid him much attention, only smiling briefly at him or answering his questions with as few words as possible._

 _It was in these rare moments when he could watch her without her noticing, he saw beyond the tough exterior she presented. He saw her devotion to her father and Mammy, her care she gave to her youngest sister, the sweet tenderness she had with her little son. He saw the way she beamed with pride as he brought her the small rabbits and doves he had collect while hunting with the farmhand, Will. On the nights Frank spent with Sue, he could clearly hear her walking the halls as she checked on her little boy throughout the night, sometimes singly softly to him when he would awake from a bad dream. He could hear her as she gently walked her father back to his bed or the sound of her quiet laughter as she talked to Mammy. Her hidden softness made Frank want her even more._

 _But he loved Sue. He knew he did. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her; what he felt for Scarlett was nothing more than pure lust._

 _But it was a lust that penetrated his every waking moment. He fantasized about her and what it would be like to run his hands through her raven locks, to gaze into those green eyes as he moved on top of her, to feel her soft, white skin- to kiss her - to taste her. The image of her writhing in ecstasy beneath him even crept into his mind during the intimate moments he spent with Suellen, causing him to panic at the fear that he might call out Scarlett's name as he reached his peak._

 _Scarlett was a demon that possessed his very soul. A tumor he needed to remove from his life. He deduced that the only way to eradicate the green-eyed vixen from his mind was to act out his fantasies one time and then put it all behind him, moving on with his life._

 _While in basic training for the military, he had a deathly fear of heights. His fear was so intense that he prepared to leave the military under dishonorable discharge if need be. The therapist assigned to his barracks (newly appointed thanks to the recent spotlight on PTSD) explained to him that the only way to overcome his fear, was to face it head-on – and it had worked. He was sure that this approach would apply here perfectly as well._

 _The problem was how to bed an unwilling Scarlett and keep it a secret from the rest of the world – especially Suellen._

 _In October of that year, Sue's family had thrown the couple an engagement bar-b-que, inviting almost everyone in the county. Most of the people he had never even met before. His only invited guests were his sister and his commanding officer in the Navy. But the fact that Sue was so happy to be the center of attention, made him not mind that he felt as if he was a stranger at his own party._

 _After a mind-numbing amount of small talk with the abundant amount of family friends and relatives of the O' Hara's, he retreated to a small alcove a few feet from the bar._

 _"Are you hiding … or contemplating running away? "_

 _There she stood in front of him smiling. "Good Lord, she's gorgeous "he thought as he savored the image of his future sister in law in her simple green dress._

 _"I just don't know most of the people here"_

 _"Well, over there are the twins, Stu and Brent – they're rowdy, but super sweet. Over there are the Fontaines. The old lady we call the "Old Miss ", and the younger woman seated next to her is "young miss "she said as she began explaining who the guests foreign to him were, adding funny tidbits along the way or impersonations of the person she was describing._

 _"Hello Scarlett." A blonde haired young man said as he approached them. "You look beautiful, as always… And you must be Frank "he said as he thrust his hand forward for him to shake never taking his eyes off Scarlett._

 _Scarlett introduced the men to one another, keeping care to avoid eye contact with the man she identified as Ashley Wlikes. She quickly excused herself and left them in conversation with one another as she sought out his wife, Melanie._

 _When he saw Scarlett again, hours later, she was obviously upset. For the rest of the night she clung to his side, almost as if for protection or busied herself cleaning up after the guests at the party._

 _When the last guest had left and a drunken Suellen was led off to bed, he joined Scarlett in restoring some semblance of normalcy to the back property of their ramshackle plantation._

 _" Thank you , Frank " she sadly smiled at him as began clearing the discarded plates of left over food._

 _" Is everything okay Scarlett ? You seem upset about something ." he questioned as placed several folded chairs against the wall to the back patio._

 _She took in a deep breath " I just want to forget this night even happened "_

 _Frank took that as an omen. She wanted to forget …. And he had the magic pill that could make it a reality for her. He was surprised how easy is was to obtain the small pill from the seedy under-life in Atlanta- It was easy …too easy really. Mostly he was surprised at the affluence and respectability of the distributor and how nonchalantly he gave him the item, giving him a disgusting smirk as he did so._

 _He briefly contemplated his course of action, questioning if she truly wouldn't remember anything and estimated his chances of getting away with his merciless planned act of violence._

 _She was just so tempting. Even now, acting so solemn and withdrawn, he was drawn to her like a moth to a flame. Yes, this was the only solution. After tonight, he would forget her, forget how she stirred in him the feelings of desire and passion he never knew he possessed._

 _As she began removing the white linen tablecloths off the tables, he took the initiative, briefly pouring the pill's white granules into her temporarily abandoned glass of wine._

 _Soon Scarlett began to have trouble standing, her speech was slurring into incoherent syllables, and she felt herself slipping into unconsciousness. She felt her eyes flutter in a struggle to keep open; her thick black lashes beginning to weigh heavily upon her delicate eyelids. Her arms and legs seemed to be weighed down by some invisible anchor tethered to her limbs, causing her limbs to sink into an unseen deluge, gaping its invisible mouth as she was being entirely consumed._

 _Frank. She noticed Frank. Gathering all of her fleeting strength, she attempted to reach out for him._

 _" Frank…he..lp….me " she struggled to say before collapsing into his arms._

 _As he caught her, he looked into her face: helpless and peaceful in this forced unconsciousness. He knew she was unhappy- deeply plagued by some unmentioned trauma. In sleep, her face relaxed. The lines of worry that often crossed her brow had vanished and the tension in her jaw disappeared – momentarily freeing her from the burdens she carried. He felt horrible about what he had just done and what he had thought of doing. He changed his mind and lifted her small frame in his arms, determined to place her safely in her bed, abandoning all devious thoughts he had harbored against her. But when her lips parted softly letting out a whispering sigh, he felt the overpowering sensation in his groin that overcame him whenever she was in his presence. If he any hope, any hope at all, of living a happy life with Suellen – or any woman for that matter- he had to expunge her from his being. One time. That's all it would take. One time. "She would never notice, never even know what happened. This is for her benefit as well as mine.", he repeated to himself._

 _He carried her limp body to the overgrown orchard, out of view in its secluded location. He slung, in the crook of his arm, an old blanket he had tucked away in the dark crevasses of the back porch. He laid it down, attempting to smooth out the frayed edges as he gently placed her down. As he brushed back the black curls that had fallen across her pale skin, he traced the outline of her lips with his finger. Feeling the need to kiss her, he attempting to force open her slightly parted lips with his tongue. He opened her blouse to marvel at what had been denied to him and to every other male who had laid eyes upon her. He caressed her neck, chest, and torso._

 _It was then that he took her. Took her unconscious and unwilling body, filling her emptiness with his acrid and putrid ejaculate moments after he had begun. He rested his forehead against hers, savoring the last moments inside her, smelling the fragrance of her hair, the sweetness of her breath. He quickly readjusted her undergarments and re-buttoned her blouse in an attempt to make it appear that she had simply fallen asleep in the soft underbrush of the orchard. Gently removing the blanket from underneath her, he kissed her red lips one last time before disappearing into the night._

 _She awoke the next day to the bright sun streaks penetrating through the branches of the trees in the orchard. She was immersed in a bed of soft, sweet smelling grass and ripe peaches. The birds within the branches softly chirped their good morning to her as she adjusted her eyes to her surroundings. She realized she was outside lying in the morning dew covered blades of grass. As she lifted her head, she felt the piercing sharp pains that always accompanied an intense headache. She sat up, pondering how she had arrived at her present state of dishevel._

 _She had large gaps in her memory of the previous night's events; only remembering that she had felt very drunk, drunker than she had ever been in her entire life. She berated herself, as she believed that she had passed out in her drunken state and spent the night outside as a result. When she moved to get up, she noticed it : The sticky residue that coated her inner thighs, the soreness in her pelvic region, the discharge that filled her underwear… she placed her hand over her mouth in mortification of the evidence of her act of intimacy with someone-outside -where anyone could have seen -even her son- and the fact that she had no idea who it was._

 _For the next six weeks, Frank strutted around like a peacock. His plan was a success, he had slept with Scarlett and he had purged her from his mind. His life would go on as planned. He would marry his Suellen, live a life of normalcy and contentment, never giving Scarlett any thought other than that of a loving brother. Of course, he still found her desperately beautiful, he reasoned he always would; but he longer felt the pressing need to have her, to conquer her body. The reality of sleeping with her was vastly different than the elaborate imagery he had thought that it would be (never of course, never taking into account that the experience would have been much different had she been conscious). She acted no differently towards him. She didn't remember anything. She was still her indifferent self, never giving a thought to him unless it was to flash her dimpled smile his way when she wanted something from him. He began calling her his sister, even making her laugh from time to time with his absurd antidotes. He continued to enjoy his role as loving uncle to little Wade and that of protective big brother to Careen. His intimate moments with Suellen came alive as well. He was fully present and able to enjoy the physical love given to him by the woman he loved. He had found his place at last: with four women, a wailing toddler, and drunken Irishman. All was well, and Frank, for the first time in his life- felt at peace with the world._

 _Then the bottom fell out …._

 _He found her sitting on the back porch of the house, dangling her feet off the edge as she wiped the large tears that fell from her eyes. Her bent head and slumped shoulders made her slight body seems as though it were collapsing inwardly- as if she were trying to make herself as invisible as possible in an attempt to remove herself from the world._

 _" Scarlett, what's wrong ? " he said as he sat beside her, ignoring the light fresh smell of her perfume._

 _She said nothing , only shaking her head as if to say " no, please leave me alone " He could see she was upset. Her green eyes were bright and swollen from crying._

 _" Whatever it is , you can tell me "_

 _She bent her head in shame as she blurted out the words ," I'm pregnant " ._

 _Frank felt his heart begin beat rapidly as she recounted how she came to this recent discovery. Why hadn't he thought of using protection? He had incorrectly assumed that Scarlett was on the pill. Weren't all women?_

 _She was six weeks pregnant, causing her to pin-point the date of conception as the night of the engagement party. She couldn't hold back her tears as she confessed to him that she had slept with someone that night , but in her overly drunken state couldn't recall who that person even was._

 _She pleaded and begged for him not to tell anyone, to never reveal what she had just told him._

 _"But eventually people will find out. What will you say when the baby is born? Who will you say is the father?" Frank asked as he peered across the fields of Tara, unable to look the woman he raped, and who was now carrying his child , in the face._

 _"I'm not going to tell them anything because I'm not having this baby. I have an appointment scheduled for tomorrow afternoon."_

 _"What kind of appointment?"_

 _" What kind of appointment do you think, Frank. I just told you – I'm_ _ **not having**_ _this baby."_

 _Frank felt his heart drop. His baby… his forever wanted baby …. She was removing it from her body. His child was in her , growing already, its little heart beating , getting bigger every day and she was going to rid herself of it._

 _"Scarlett, please don't do that. I beg you. "_

 _"Frank, didn't you hear what I just said?! I have no idea who the father of this child even is… not one clue! How could I have a second baby without a father? I struggle so much as it is with one child on my own …. imagine if I had two! I can't Frank…even if I wanted to, I just can't have this baby"._

 _He pressed closer to her, his breathing heavier as he gripped tightly onto her hands." Please Scarlett, please have this baby. I'll help you. I'll pay for everything. You or this baby won't want for a thing, I swear. I'll be by your side the entire time."_

 _She furrowed her brows in wonder of the reason behind his extreme level of concern. She knew Frank was a nice guy, but this sanctimonious reaction was even beyond him._

 _" Why are you so interested in this baby ? Why would you want to pay for everything? This has nothing to do with you."_

 _"Because " he stammered ," because I care about you …. You're my friend…and….."_

 _" No, that doesn't make any sense " she interrupted "Tell me the truth Frank. Why does this baby mean so much to you ? Why do you care if I have the baby? Why would you be so generous to pay for everything and help me care for it ? You know that Suellen would never agree to that , yet you still offer it ? Why ? "_

 _He couldn't raise his face to look at her. He fixed his gaze on the red dirt beneath his feet as his breathing became audibly louder._

 _In an instant, she understood. The bile rose in her throat, filling her mouth with warm sick as she processed the truth and horror of the information._

 _"It was you, wasn't it ? You're the father, aren't you?" she whispered through ragged breaths._

 _He remined silent , unable to form a coherent thought or sentence._

 _"Aren't you ?! " she screamed at him , demanding an answer._

 _"Yes ."_

 _" How did this even happen?! How did I get so drunk that I slept with my sister's fiancé on the night of her engagement party ?! Does Suellen know!? TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED, FRANK!"_

 _She was standing now, her small frame towering over Frank as he seemed to crumple up in fear and disgust._

 _" I …. I made you that drunk"_

 _"HOW ?!"_

 _" I put something ….. into your drink …and …."_

 _She was shaking at the understanding of it all. Frank, the man she thought to be her friend, the one she confided in and sought for help had drugged and raped her. She was now carrying the evidence of his evil act; pregnant with some sort of amoeba. Not a child, for children were conceived consensually; this …thing….. was forced upon her in an ugly, treacherous way. It was sub-human, feeding off her body in the treacherous way foreign bodies did when inside human beings._

 _It was at that moment that nausea overtook her and she lurched the contents of her stomach into the neglected rose bush planted at the base of the porch. Frank tried to help her, attempting to wipe away the remnants of sick that has spilled onto her shirt, holding her so that she wouldn't lose her balance._

 _Wearily she rose to face him, blaring into his face with eyes that shone like orbs of green fire in her pale face. Shaking off his hands she seethed at him," If you put your hands on me again, I will rip your fucking throat out ."_

 _The next day, Frank's thoughts were singularly on the fact that his baby would never be born, that today, Scarlett would rid herself of his child. He was unable to focus on anything, never once even thinking of the legal repercussions of his actions on the devastation this would cause on his relationship with Suellen. He fumbled with the blueprints of his planned store, desperately attempting to occupy his thoughts with anything other than his mess of a life. It was a valiant, but futile attempt. Running his hands through his hair, he glanced up and saw Scarlett standing before him._

 _" Scarlett. What … When did you… How ….. "_

 _"Are you okay ?" was finally all he was able to verbalize._

 _She stoically sat before him , presenting herself to him in a manner he had seen her use when speaking with Suellen. " I have a business proposition for you. And I believe it's in your best interest to accept it ."_

 _Frank sat silently , unsure and afraid to say anything._

 _" I didn't have the abortion. I'm still pregnant ."_

 _Frank couldn't contain his elation as he rushed over to her , kneeling by her lap , promising that he would do whatever it took to provide for their baby._

 _" I know you will " she replied without emotion._

 _" I refuse to have another child with the stigmata of bastard attached to it. I will not expose this baby to the stupidity of others or to the shameful looks and whispers that will no doubt come as the true story of how this baby was conceived comes out. This child will have a father and will be born legitimatly to loving parents "_

 _Frank was puzzled. What did she mean by loving parents and legitimate?_

 _"You're getting married? Do you mean you're going to try and pass the baby off as belonging to another man…..or will he know he's not the father?"_

 _Scarlett closed her eyes, realizing the nightmare of what she was about to subject herself to._

 _" You're an idiot Frank , you know that ? We , you and I , are getting married – today ."_

 _"What ?" Frank was sure he misunderstood her._

 _"We are getting married - so I need you to gather up your birth certificate and social security card immediately. I am not having this baby without being married to its father. And since you are the father, as horrible as that may be - it means I have to marry you._ _ **You**_ _will be the one to tell my dear sister that you and I fell desperately in love, and could no longer ignore of intense feelings we had for one another and convinced me to elope. We will stay married, appearing to everyone as a loving couple all throughout my pregnancy and for a few months after the baby is born, where then, you and I will divorce on the grounds of mental instability - yours , not mine. Upon which you will dispense to me half of your assets , carry the baby on your insurance until adulthood, agree to me as the full custodial parent, as well as agreeing to pay a large sum of child support monthly until our child turns eighteen. You will never utter a word of what happened that night of the party to anyone, especially our child, as long as you live. "_

 _" What if I refuse ? " he quietly stated , purposing avoiding her eyes._

 _" Then I'll tell everyone how you drugged and raped me. It doesn't matter if I can't legally bring you to justice- although I'm confident I could - the court of public opinion will crucify you. I'll gladly submit to a DNA test the moment the baby is born. I'll place a copy of the results in every damn mailbox in Atlanta. Look at you! Do you honestly think people would believe that I would willingly let some disgusting piece of filth like you touch me ?! They'll all know the truth. All of your family , your friends, your business associates – everyone. Everything will be gone, everything you worked for – destroyed. You think my sister will still want you if she knew what you were capable of? You think anyone would? You'll even be dishonorably discharged from the military , stripped of your rank and sent off in shame. And your baby – your darling child – will grow up hating you for what you did to its mother as you will watch from a distance as he or she grows , never allowing you to be a part of their life._

 _You did this Frank, now you're going fix it…. Do we have a deal?"_

v

When she arrived home later that evening, Scarlett immediately went to her daughter's bedroom. She gently knocked on the door with the back of her knuckles.

" Ella. It's mom, may I come in ? "

Scarlett heard the tumble of footsteps as her daughter came to open the door. She was greeted as always with Ella's bright smile and pink cheeks.

" You and I , young lady, need to have a talk."


	12. HBIC

" I'm sorry, Mr. Butler is with a client. May I take a message ? "

Ann fumbled with her headset, trying to adjust the volume as the voice on the other end nervously recited his contact information. This headset was just one more thing she had to get used to. She was a terrible secretary and she knew it. She soothed herself by reminding herself that this was temporary- another step on her ladder to success. She may have been seriously overqualified to answer phones and file papers, but if she wanted to eventually put her M.B.A. to use in Butler enterprises, any small entryway – even one as tedious as personal secretary – would be greatly accepted.

Her mother's friendship with the matriarch of the Butler family was the singular reason she even had this job. The job prospects for recent graduates, even ones with advanced degrees, was depressing – not to mention disappointing. Lucille Hampton's tearful woes about her over-educated, plain, and unmarried daughter prompted a promise from Eleanor Butler to secure for Ann a placement in Butler enterprises as the boss' girl Friday.

Of all the office equipment, the copy machine was her fiercest enemy. Assured that it was of satanic origin, Ann tried to use it as little as possible. Each time she attempted to exercise the demons within the behemoth, she was defeated by puffs of black ink and jammed paper. Then there was the constant flow of messages and phone calls – all demanding for an appointment or a "quick word "with Mr. Butler. There was no method to understanding it. One week she was to schedule a lunch meeting with one client, only to refuse the same man any communication a week later. Sometimes they would beg her. "It's a matter of life and death! "they'd shout to her over the telephone. And always, it was the same answer. The one she was programmed to give: I will gladly take a message and get it to Mr. Butler right away. Or, the other phrase; the one that would drive home the message that their attempts of contacting her boss were nil: Would you like me to transfer you to Mr. Ross Butler? No one ever chose that option.

As much as she hated the fact that her mother was the reason she had her job, she was grateful that she worked for Rhett Butler instead of Ross Butler. The stories told about him in quiet corners of the breakroom or in hushed tones over lunch in the cafeteria were scandalous. Ann was new and listened intently to the gossip; not even caring if it were true. She enjoyed this comradery with some of the other women in the building. It was nice to be a part of a group for once. She was always so timid and shy that she often felt left out. From what she gathered, Ross Butler was a notorious philanderer. None of his secretaries lasted long – at least not the good ones. And the ones who remained for more than a few months, his present secretary included, were just as scandalous as he - looking for a sugar daddy themselves.

 _"I'm so glad that I work for my Mr. Butler." Ann chimed in during lunch one afternoon._

 _The other women laughed a little at her statement. "Oh, there's issues with him too."_

 _Ann sat silently. Did he have a peccadillo for young women too? Should she be concerned? She had to admit that despite his age, he was good-looking. But to "be "with him ? She had never thought of this before. Her mind had always been occupied with learning her job._

 _"Didn't you ever wonder what happened to his last secretary? Why she quit? "_

 _She shook her no. She didn't. She wasn't as complicated as that. She was never one to sit around daydreaming about things that were none of her business._

 _"She couldn't handle the ice queen."_

 _"Ice Queen?" Anne questioned._

 _"Mrs. Butler… She's horrid. "_

 _Ann knew they were lying. Lying about the entire thing probably. Even the tidbits about Ross were more than likely false. She had met Mrs. Butler already and she was nothing more than sweetness personified. She was friendly and welcoming; telling her she was doing a fantastic job and that she was so pleased to have her here. When she shook Ann's hand goodbye, there was sincerity in her eyes. A true kind woman._

 _"Mrs. Butler was nothing but nice to me. I thought she was lovely."_

 _"She was_ _ **NICE**_ _to you? Was she drunk …. Or high? "_

Ann scrolled through her e- mails. Even on her work e mail her mother would still send her articles about the problems women over twenty-five had in getting married or ones about the dangers of waiting too long to have children. Her mother had a knack for making her feel like a terrible failure.

She heard the familiar ding sound when the elevator doors opened and took a deep breath, praying that it would not be a disgruntled client, one whom she had told politely to fuck off. Looking up from her e-mails she was met with the face of a woman. An expensive woman. From her Fendi sunglasses to her Burberry scarf, she was polished from head to toe. She drummed her manicured nails along the counter above Ann's computer screen signaling her impatience.

"I need to see him" she declared, never removing her sunglasses. Ann barely understood what she had said. She was too focused on the woman's appearance. "Those earnings are real diamonds", Anne thought." Bigger than any I've ever seen. They must have cost as much as my car. I wonder about her car. What does she drive? She was probably brought here in a limo ".

"I'm sorry Ma'am, but he's in with a client and asked not to be disturbed. Shall I have him contact you when he is free or would you prefer to wait? "

"Not to be disturbed?" she repeated in frustration. "Who is in there? "

"I'm sorry Ma'am- I am not at liberty to say"

The women took a deep breath and let out a sigh. "I will sit here and wait for ten minutes. If he's still in this meeting by then, I'm going in whether he wants to be disturbed or not."

She hoped that this woman was not serious as one could never tell with the uber rich; they all thought the rules didn't apply to them. Ann nodded her head in agreement and asked if she would care for something to drink while she waited. The woman, now seated with legs crossed, gave an abrupt, "No" .

This is going to be great fun, Ann thought as she stole glances at the figure before her. She had never seen a woman like this in real life. She didn't think they even truly existed- other than on those rich housewives' reality TV shows. She first noticed her handbag. It was Hermes – unmistakably real as its sides of stiff leather stood at attention. You could always tell which ones were fakes. They always drooped inward. Her simple grey dress was cut to perfection- fitting her body in a way that only came from personally tailored clothes. Her shoes, covered in ostrich skin and dyed a pale beige, were the kind of shoes women fantasied about, pinning pictures of them to their Pinterest walls. She didn't need to see the bottoms to know that they were red. The expensive lady was oblivious to Ann's silent evaluation of her wardrobe and kept her head down, focusing on her phone and not on Ann – thank God.

"Alright. Ten minutes are up. I'm going in."

Ann was thrown into a panic. This crazy woman was going to JUST walk in! She sprang from her chair , throwing herself between the door and the obviously delusional woman. She threw her arm across the doorway barring entry.

"Ma'am, I cannot allow you to go in there."

"I'm going to count to three. By the time I get to three, you will no longer be blocking this doorway. Is this understood?"

Ann was thrown for a loop - this woman was crazy. "Listen lady, I'm about to call security."

At that, the woman backed away. With an eerie calmness, she removed her sunglasses and looked into Anne's eyes – revealing the greenest eyes she had ever seen. "What did you just say to me?"

"I'll have to think about that." Rhett said shifting in his leather office chair. This information – and this entire conversation was not expected and thrown upon him moments after he arrived at work. He looked out of his window pondering his answer. In his corner office on the 23rd floor, the view of Atlanta was breathtaking. It wasn't Charleston. I would never be. But still, the urban metropolis of Georgia was appreciated. He didn't always feel this way. Once upon a time, a young Rhett Butler wouldn't be caught dead in Atlanta. Calling it sullied and backwards, he hated it. And yet he came back …. again …... and again. The lure of a certain lady's charm pulling him back each time.

Poor Belle, he thought. She had come to him once again in distress- searching for guidance and help. He had been taken a-back to see her. He had not darkened her doorway for quite some time, and he had to admit that he missed her. Not longing for her physical attributes -it was her listening ear and comradery he missed. Belle's laid back and simple approach to life was a gift that his tempestuous wife did not in any way possess. Contrary to his wife's beliefs, his favorite times spent with Belle were the lazy hours he would spend just talking to her. Talking about nonsense or his business … or Scarlett. She would lie next to him, just listening; sometimes drawing circles on his brown chest with her finger. He didn't love her, not in the way she wanted him to, but she was a true friend to him- an ally even.

Belle sat awkwardly in the suede chair across from Rhett. She had tried to think of an alternative method of solving her problem without going to him – but a sufficient solution never presented itself, leaving her with no other choice than to visit him. She didn't want to come here. She even hated having to drive past the massive building on the interstate highway. Just the name Butler enterprises made her want to weep. She had tried desperately over the years to forget about him, to convince herself that she was over him and had moved on. But it was no use. She loved Rhett more than anything. She would give anything, her life even, to hear him say to her the three little words she repeated over and over in her heart each time she thought of him: _I love you_.

But the truth of the matter is that he didn't. She knew this.

For years she foolishly tried to will him to love her, to make herself into everything he wanted. There was even a period of time that she thought her plan would be successful, that he did feel something for her – something more than friendship; only to have those dreams slashed the moment he laid eyes on _her_. Her. Scarlett.

How one man, so secure in himself and reluctant to form any type of long term commitment could be so totally obsessed with a woman was beyond her comprehension. From the moment he met her, Belle noticed a change in him. Suddenly, her Rhett- the one she loved and adored, was distant and contemplative. He would ask her if she knew anything about Scarlett ; wanting to know her likes, tastes, names of her former lovers, her friends, her background. He would spend endless amounts of time describing to Belle the attributes he found to be the most alluring in her. Never noticing that while he regaled about her eyes, hair, skin, attitude, and intelligence, Belle was dying inside. She was stunned when he announced that he had been seeing Scarlett romantically, surprised when he informed her that they were intimate, and crushed when he excitedly stated that he had asked her to marry him and that she had said yes. Never once, from the moment Scarlett had walked into his life, had Belle lied to herself again. Rhett did not love her – and he never would. Yes, she would still accept him- giving herself to him freely each time he came to her. She knew he was using her; using her body as a tool for resentment or for an outlet of anger – all stemming from passionate emotion caused by his wife. Yet, she was still grateful for these moments- even though she knew why he came to her, realizing that she was to him just a poor replacement for the woman he wanted to hurt, tame, and love.

As she looked around his opulent office, she felt those familiar pangs of sadness and jealousy. In her direct view sat pictures of his children – his beautiful children with her; their dimpled cheeks and bright eyes mocking her. There were drawings and paintings on the walls, meticulously strewn by little hands, depicting sunny days, princesses, and dinosaurs- framed as though they were priceless works of art personally commissioned. More than the impressive array of books, awards, collectibles, and priceless antiques, the one thing that drew her attention was the small framed photograph of his family that sat on his desk. A family that did not include her. Scarlett's oldest son had his hands resting on the shoulders of his younger sister, his eyes closed and smiling widely. Her red- headed daughter had her head thrown back in laughter as their middle child covered her eyes in horror. And there he was, as handsome as ever, kissing his wife as she held their baby son.

She heard raised voices outside his door. Muffled voices. Female ones. It was almost as if a physical confrontation was happening in the doorway leading to his office. Rhett heard it too, yet remained unfazed. This wasn't unusual. Excitable emotions were bound to run high at any financing firm. Somehow people had trouble retaining a sense of calmness when they were told they would not be receiving the money they sought.

The door to Rhett's office flew open, banging loudly against the metal doorstop. Anne appeared, bedraggled and out of breath. She was desperately trying to hold a woman back from entering his office, grabbing at anything to try and restrain her. "Security!", she screamed. "Security!". Suddenly, the woman, who was moments before driven by unexplainable strength, trying to enter the office -came to an abrupt halt. Ann thought she heard her gasp but she couldn't be sure with the sound of her own breathing filling her ears.

"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME ?!" the woman belted toward Rhett and the individual he was meeting with.

"I'm so sorry Mr. Butler. She just came barging in!" Ann said breathlessly. Rhett raised his hand, indicating that everything was fine.

"It's alright boys" Rhett assured the security officers that had just entered the room. The guards nodded in understanding. This wasn't the first time they were summoned because of Mrs. Butler's actions and they were certain that it wouldn't be the last.

"Ann, it's alright. May I introduce you to my wife, Scarlett. Would you please excuse us; everything is fine."

Ann silently backed out of the room in a state of confusion. She fell into her desk chair in exhaustion. "His wife?" she questioned. "Oh, my goodness …. I must have met the wrong Mrs. Butler. The kind Mrs. Butler is the wife of Ross Butler. The wife of my superior is the "other" Mrs. Butler … she's the ice queen."

"I'm not doing this again Rhett! I'm done! Do you hear me? DONE! "

Scarlett was shaking in anger- her eyes blazing as she glared at the woman who was once her husband's mistress and almost destroyer of her marriage and family. "I refuse to be made a fool of once again by you and this… this walking venereal disease! If you want her, take her. I'm through with you."

"Scarlett, please …"

"I'm sure Belle would gladly accept my leftovers, wouldn't you Belle? I hope you've warned her about your little problem of keeping it up in the bedroom. Although, I'm sure that being the whore she is, she would have a few tricks up her sleeve to help you along. I hope you're a good actress Belle. You'll need to deliver a great performance every time he screws you- faking an orgasm every time!"

"Scarlett, enough. Let me explain…"

"No. Fuck you. Fuck you and fuck her. I'm divorcing you, you piece of garbage. And I'm going to bleed you dry this time! You should have listened when everyone told you to have me sign a pre-nup, because I'm taking everything. I've always been faithful to you, you son of a bitch. And God knows how many times I could have strayed! Go ask that waste of sperm you call a brother how many times I've refused his advances! Oh Rhett, how could you do this again?! "

She felt light-headed. Dizzy even. She half closed her eyes as she gripped the edge of the table near her. She felt herself swaying and the firm grip of her husband as he steadied her.

"Scarlett, sit!", he demanded.

She threw off his hand and gathered up all her strength to walk toward his desk. Holding her head high and her slightly upturned nose in the air, she told herself that she was siting – not because he had told her to – but because she was feeling faint and was grateful for a moment to regain her bearings. She sat in Rhett's leather office chair as to indicate it was she who was in control. The first time he had left her for another woman, she was left in despair- begging him to stay. This time was different. This time she would show them both that SHE was the head bitch in control.

Across from her sat her life's greatest enemy. To say that she disliked Belle was an understatement. She loathed her. Hated her with such a passion that she would not only revel in her demise, but would rejoice in it. She was the cause of so much hurt in her marriage. And still, Rhett couldn't seem to let her go. After all this time, he still maintained some sort of relationship with this… this creature.

Belle Watling, the owner of several gentleman's clubs in Atlanta and New Orleans, was notorious among the wealthier citizens of Atlanta. Her saloons were dens of inequity, places where – for the right price- one could find copious amounts of drugs, alcohol, illegal gambling, and prostitution. And she was successful too. The more affluent women of Atlanta shunned her, sometimes even refusing to walk on the same side of the street as her; but their husbands- the barons of Atlanta's industry-were her frequent customers. A few years ago, high ranking political officials were discovered to be having illicit affairs with some of Belle's "girls". Scarlett hoped this would be the end of her "saloons", but instead the national publicity only increased her popularity, landing her a book deal and a spot on a reality television show.

Scarlett eyed the woman before her and felt an overwhelming sense of sadness. This wasn't the Belle she remembered. The Belle she knew was sultry and seductive with fiery red hair to match. Before her sat an old woman. Tired and defeated, she no longer had that relentless spark that had caused so many men – her own husband included- to be drawn to her. It was sad- depressing even- the realization that things were changing in her life- even Belle , pressing her life forward whether she liked it or not.

"I haven't had any contact with Belle since before Cat was born – you know that. She came to me this morning with some interesting news about Ella's new love interest."

Scarlett sat up straight in the chair, her hands grasping at the edge of desk for support. "Does he work for her? Is he a pimp or something? Belle, if you try and tell me that my daughter is working for you, I will truly throw you out of this window!"

Belle's tired blue eyes looked up at her. "He's my son".

Scarlett blinked her eyes in rapid succession, trying to process this startling statement. " Your son ?" ,she repeated at them both.

" Do you remember when I told you that I had a ward in New Orleans ? Well ….."

Scarlett voice turned shrill. " Are you trying to tell me that this is YOUR son too ?! Because if you are , you'd better call those guards back in here. I'm seriously going to kill you BOTH! "


	13. 13

Ella sat at her vanity and studied the face before her. Somehow, over the course of two months, she had grown up. Her childish dreams and thoughts had simply flitted away from her. The change had happened so rapidly that she barely had enough time to register it. But here she sat, admiring the grown woman peering back at her. Three weeks ago, her relationship with Taz had entered into something serious. She loved him, she was certain. Loved him enough to follow him to the ends of the earth- enough to give everything she had– including that one aspect of life a woman could never get back.

It would have all been kept a secret had Bonnie not riffled through her purse, searching for lip-gloss and finding a box of Trojan condoms.

" Tell me EVERYTHING ! ", Bonnie demanded as she placed the box of condoms in front of her older sister. She sat crossed legged at her older sister's feet-her big blue eyes wide with anticipation. Look at what a child she is, thought Ella in her new-found sense of maturity. She would divulge enough information to impress her precocious little sister and nothing more. Some things are special and would only stay between she and Taz.

"There's not much to tell. I just kind of happened." Ella replied in an off-handed manner. Before she could fully tell her little sister small tidbits of her exciting and romantic tale, she heard the rustling of the plush carpet as her bedroom door struggled to open.

Gerry's little body squeezed through the slight opening. He stood there freshly bathed in his beloved Paw Patrol jammies: the ones that he refused to be parted from. The pajama set was far too small for him now. His adorable little belly poked out from underneath the meager covering of the blue and white cotton shirt-revealing his protruding navel. Gerry was not necessarily tall for his age, but after repeated washings and overuse, even the pants fit snuggly under his belly and only went down to just below his knees.

" Your daddy is here, Ella… and your daddy is here, Bonnie…..and my daddy is here….and my mommy is here too….and I 'posed to tell Ella to go downstairs right now". Bonnie loudly groaned at her brother's continual distortion of their family. Four year old Gerry had trouble understanding that Wade and Ella had different fathers than he, Bonnie , and Cat – leading him to conclude that he and all of his siblings had different fathers …. and mothers.

" We have the SAME parents , Gerry ! Your daddy IS my daddy – and your mommy IS my mommy….mom" she corrected herself …. " TOO!"

Gerry's little lips formed a straight line of indignation as his soft facial features contorted in anger. " My mommy is MY mommy !" , he declared as he clenched his tiny fists.

" Yes, and she's MINE too. Believe me, I'd love to give her solely to you, but I can't ! Geez Gerry, how many times do I have to explain this to you. Mom is all of our mom. Daddy is your, mine, and Cat's daddy. Wade has a different daddy and so does Ella. So, obviously we " she stated as she pointed her finger back and forth between herself and her younger brother "have the SAME parents."

He thought about Bonnie's explanation for a moment before shaking his head-full of black curls in disapproval. With his huge hazel eyes , he looked at his sister apologetically. " I's sorry Bonnie…. you can't have my mommy".

Ella was ignoring this exchange between her brother and sister on parentage and was instead thinking of all the reasons why her dad was downstairs with her mom and step-father, wanting to talk to her. None of the scenarios in her head were good. She felt the beads of perspiration form on her forehead; the heat rising to her cheeks.

"Bonnie, you have to come to down there with me ."

" Um… no, thank you. There's no way I'd go down there with the tyrant all fired up." Bonnie was so often on the receiving end of her mother's anger that she was relieved that she had requested Ella and not her.

" How do you know mom's mad? They could just want to talk to me about college or something ."

Bonnie raised her eyebrow in indignation – she wasn't stupid. Ella's father wouldn't be down there with her mother because of anything pleasant. " Then why do you want me to go down there with you? Take Cat – she'll never yell in front of her like she does with us."

"Bonnie! You NEED to come down there with me!" Ella tightly grabbed her arm , turning the porcelain skin on her sister's slender arm an angry red. " No, Ella !" Bonnie yanked her arm away from Ella's grasp. Ella may have been taller than her by a good four inches, but she had inherited her grandfather's …. And her mother's …Irish determination and strength.

Ella stood back from her sister. She could feel the sweat rolling down her back. " If you don't come down there with me , I'm going to tell mom that you smoke pot with Prissy."

"Ella! Please ! " Bonnie instantly rose to her feet , begging and pleading for her sister to not disclose her recreational drug use to their mother.

" How many times have I taken the rap for you ?! I need you to do this for me! Bonnie , if you love me , you would come down there with me ."

Bonnie relented. She reluctantly drug herself off her sister's bed and shuffled her feet towards the door. "I hope you realize the dangerous situation I'm about to put myself in by going in there, Ella."

The two sisters stood side by side as they slowly descended the grand staircase, neither of them in a hurry to face the trio that waited in the sitting room.

Before opening the ornate doors that led to their fate, they looked at each other. Eyes met, jaws clenched, and chests heaved in anxious anticipation. Ella's sweaty hand grabbed the door handle. She was certain they knew. Somehow, they had discovered her secret. She knew it. She was as good as dead. They knew she was no longer a virgin- that she had given herself fully to Taz, and was continuing to do so.

Bonnie's indifferent façade had vanished. Whatever lay behind these doors – she wanted nothing to do with. "This won't be good", she quietly murmured- more to herself than to her sister.

Ella drew in every ounce of courage she had and walked into the room with her sister close on her heels. If she hadn't been scared to death, she'd have found the trio in front of her hilarious. Her mother sat flanked between her former and current husband, reminiscent of the judges on America's got talent.

"Bonnie , out " , her mother firmly stated- never taking her eyes off of Ella.

" I'm Sorry, Ella " , Bonnie quietly whispered to her sister as she hurriedly left the room, thankful that was spared from certain death.

" Am I in trouble? " Ella questioned. She was surprised at the childish tone her voice had taken. In an instant she had transformed into a little girl again, shyly standing before her mommy asking forgiveness for some trivial matter- promising never to do it again.

 _I'm sorry I pushed Bonnie. I promise I won't do it again._

But this time she wasn't a little girl. She was basically an adult and there were serious repercussions for her recent actions. It wouldn't be a time-out this time.

"Ella, we want to have a talk with you", her mother began as Ella took a tentative seat. She sat on the edge of the seat and clutched the sides.

" We all know about your relationship with that boy."

"Taz. His name is Taz", Frank instructed Scarlett, causing her to momentarily take a steading breath and a glaring glance toward her ex-husband.

" As I was saying, we know you are _involved_ with Taz Watling and that you have been spending a lot of time together. I know this little romance is exciting and fun, but we need you to stop seeing him. "

Ella rose her head and in looking her mother directly in the eyes, simply stated," No."

"Excuse me, young lady ?"

"You heard me, mom. No."

Her father and step-father remained mute. They both knew better than to get in- between two O'Hara women during an argument. It was like trying to separate two dogs as they tore chunks of meat out of each other. Both had unsuccessfully attempted to separate O' Hara sisters during an argument and knew the signs. They watched closely for those tell -tale signs of an oncoming attack between mother and daughter.

"No , what ?"

" No , I will not quit seeing him. "

Scarlett nervously laughed. Ella never defied her. She was sure that this was a little joke and that Ella's tough-girl act would crack, leaving them all laughing.

"You will do what I tell you!"

"No, I love him. And he loves me. And…..."

"You are not in love with him, Ella" her mother interrupted. "You may think you are. But I can assure you, you are not. Ella, do you know who he is? He's a criminal! His rap- sheet is ridiculous! Theft, DUI, assault, shoplifting, possession of methamphetamine, CARNAL KNOWLEDGE OF A MINOR !", she yelled as she read off Taz's many legal mishaps. "And to make matters worse, his mother is …"

" Belle Watling. Yes, I know. I also know about those charges. So, what? He made some mistakes. He got in with a bad group of guys. He stole a car, he sold drugs, he had a 16-year-old girlfriend when he was over 18. Who cares. I love him. Just because YOUR husband can't keep his dick in his pants when it comes to Taz's mother, I won't stop seeing him!"

"Ella Lorena, you watch your mouth! Don't think because you're 18 I won't slap that sass right out of your mouth! God's nightgown, your relationship ENDS right now! This boy is trouble ! You are not going to ruin your life by hanging onto this loser. He may tell you he loves you , but trust me, he only wants you for one thing! He only wants …."

"Well he's already had that. Lots of times. And guess what ? He still love me , so try another one."

Scarlett closed her eyes and gasped. She grabbed Frank's shoulder for support. Who was the alien creature that had taken over the body of her sweet little girl?

"I was going to say your money. Oh Ella, please tell me you're joking. Please, for the love of God, tell me you aren't serious. "

Rhett sneered at the scene before him. He didn't like how his wife was seeking support from someone else. And he was enraged at the family dynamic they made: Mother and Father having a discussion with their wayward daughter. It was making him physically sick.

"Ella, I can't believe that you would make such a stupid choice. I honestly thought you were smarter than this." Rhett interjected, including himself in the dialogue.

"Why are you even here? ", she belted back at him. "You're not my father, so stop trying to act like it. This has nothing to do with you , so get out !"

"Ella Lorena!" her mother shouted as she loudly slammed her right hand onto the table near her. "You apologize right now!"

Scarlett was tired of the constant animosity between her children and Rhett. She was always in the middle and forever placed in an impossible situation. She would never choose any man – even Rhett- over her kids, but she would not tolerate disrespect towards him. He loved Ella. He had loved her since she was born, Ella was just too pig-headed to see it.

Ella ignored her mother's demand for apology and continued in her defense of her relationship. "How can you even stand there, mom and lecture me on love and relationships?! Given YOUR track record, I think that if anyone needs love advise, it's YOU!"

"Oh, please Ella. Now you're just being irrational." Scarlett dismissed.

"Ella, show some respect for your mother. "her Father quipped up. Sadly, Ella ignored him - just like all the women in his life. Scarlett, a professional at ignoring anything that Frank said, didn't even notice that he was talking.

"Really? Did you ever love Wade's father? Or mine? That's right, you didn't. You can't even say you LIKED the men who treated you like a queen. Instead you love a man who treats you like shit most of the time!"

"Ella, you have no idea what you are talking about! And quit using fucking curse words! "

You sit there and tell me I'm in love with a loser when the man you love accuses you of cheating on him when it's HIM that cheated on you. Who constantly tells you that you're stupid and makes fun of you for growing up poor. Who hurts you more than he helps you? Not to mention the fact that he's the one who KILLED R.J.!""

"Ella.." Rhett tried to interject with a firm voice.

Scarlett grabbed her daughter's shoulders and shook her firmly. "That's enough ! It was no one's fault what happened to your brother. It was an accident!"

"You can't even bear to hear it , can you, mom ? Ignoring it won't make it not true! He killed him and he almost killed you! "

Ella faced her father with tears streaming out of her eyes. " Did you know that dad? That Rhett killed my little brother? It was no "accident" that caused mom to fall down the stairs. He caused it! He made her fall. I' m sick of everyone saying to me that I should be nicer to him, that he loves me. "She adopted a mocking tone as she continued. _"Oh Ella, be nicer to Rhett, he loves you so much. You're his daughter too, despite your DNA… blah, blah, blah …._ bullshit!"

Ella walked to the door of the parlor. She knew Bonnie would be intensely listening with her ear pressed closely to the dense wood of the door. Sure enough, she was there. She grabbed her sister's wrist and pulled her in the room. She had enough of Bonnie's constant belittling of their mother. It was time she knew the truth about her beloved _daddy_.

Bonnie stood there in stunned silence as she tried to take in the situation before her.

Ella faced her sister- her face flushed and involuntarily allowing sobs to penetrate her words. "Bonnie, did you know your saint of a father killed RJ?! Do you know why mom fell? No? Let me enlighten you. He called her a whore and then said that the baby and even _YOU_ were probably not even his kids. He told her she was nothing more than white trash and that no amount of money would ever change that. He told her that his greatest mistake in life was her…and that he regretted ever meeting her. And when she tried to walk past him, he wouldn't move - she couldn't get around him. She pushed him to move out of the way and he still refused to budge. Then he laughed at her and told her she was a waste of his time… and when she went to push him again, he moved so fast that she lost her balance and fell. "

"Ella, STOP THIS! ", Scarlett demanded.

"And then there's the time when Wade and I heard the two of them fighting in the dining room after Uncle Ashley's party 40th birthday party. You were so little, so you probably don't remember. Well, Wade and I were so scared that we snuck downstairs and hid behind the wing backed chairs in the parlor to see if he had hurt mom. We saw him yank mom out of her chair and force her to kiss him. She pulled away from him and told him to stop. Then, he ripped her nightgown half off before DRAGGING her up the stairs and into their bedroom. She was fighting him the whole time! Screaming at him to stop! Last time I checked, that's called rape; so, you see, little sister- you hate the wrong parent! "

Rhett lunged forward in anger, so forceful that Ella flinched - certain he would strike her.

Scarlett threw her slim body between them, pushing Rhett back as forcefully as her lithe body would allow. Frank, also unnerved by the severity of Rhett's action - pulled Ella toward him, grasping her underneath her arms so forcefully that she yelped in pain.

"Rhett, NO! "Scarlett's porcelain skin blanched a pure white. She had only seen him this angry twice- and both times had ended with the police being called. Her instinct was to protect her child from whatever violence Rhett aimed at her. Despite what was happening, Ella was her child and Rhett was in no way allowed to raise a hand to her. "Don't you touch her! ", she yelled, her right hand pushing against her husband's chest and her left shoving Ella backwards toward her father.

"You hate me so much, Ella?! I'm a murderer and a rapist?! Then get out of my house! Leave! Now!"

Ella could feel her mother physically shaking as she still held her hand against her. "Rhett, are you insane?! Tell her you're joking. Tell her you are NOT serious!" The tears that were filling her eyes began to spill freely down her cheeks. Her breath was ragged, leaving her unable to form coherent words. She felt the pain in her ribs, the only remnant of that terrible accident that left her with a shattered ribcage and pelvis, throbbing at her side like a white- hot poker.

"With pleasure! I can't wait to get away from you! I HATE you! ", Ella screamed back at him.

"Ella, shut up! Rhett, you CANNOT throw her out of this house, she's a child! "Scarlett was gulping for air between her words and the uncontrollable sobs.

"She's no child, Scarlett. She's eighteen. And if she hates me and I'm so terrible, she can get out! Let her go live on her own or with her father for all I care. Anywhere is fine as long as it's not here! "

"Daddy, stop! "Bonnie replied shakily, holding on to her sister's sleeve.

"Don't worry, I'll leave - gladly! My only fear is leaving my brother and sisters here for you to FUCK up!". Ella shook off her mother and sister and moved for the doors.

"No!" her mother shouted as she moved in front of Ella and blocked her path. "This is my house too and I say that she is not going anywhere!" The last word was barely audible behind her the sound of emotion escaping her mouth. "Ella, please stop. Just go upstairs. We'll talk about this later when we're not so upset. Please."

Ella felt nauseous. "I'm sorry mama. I love you so much and you know that. I just can't …. I just can't do this anymore. I'm going to live with dad until I leave for school in a couple of weeks."

Frank quickly followed behind his daughter as she walked past her mother and out of the room. Scarlett chased right behind them continuing to plead and beg her daughter to stay.

Through the large picture window, Rhett could see the three of them speaking. Frank was standing near his open car door with Ella crying in her mother's arms. Scarlett was crying too, crying her "ugly-cry"- the one she always covered with both her hands to spare herself the embarrassment of showing others her facial features contorted into less than flattering expressions. Even in despair her vanity remained intact. She was saying something through her tears. Something to Frank. Her hands remained protectively wrapped around her daughter, rubbing her back attempting to soothe her and, Rhett was sure, trying to convince her to stay.

"Daddy? "Bonnie whispered to her father. The room stung her ears with the buzzing of silence that always followed when a room was abruptly void of loud noise.

Rhett didn't move. His eyes remained glued on the fractured family outside. Ella had moved and now was sitting in the passenger side of Frank's car with the door closed. Scarlett had brought her hands up to cover her face this time as Frank spoke to her with more familiarity than Rhett liked.

"Go upstairs, Bonnie" was all he said.

Bonnie walked slowly up the stairs, contemplating all that was said. Had her father done those things? Impossible, she thought. She was so lost in her thoughts that she almost tripped over Cat who was sitting against the wall on the second-floor landing. She must have heard the yelling. Her long legs were drawn up close to her chest as she rocked back and forth with her hands cupped around her ears. Bonnie lowered herself into a seating position next to her sister and began drawing soothing little circles on her arm with her fingertips.

"It's okay, Cat. Everything's okay."


	14. Chapter 14

Sadly, I own nothing. Margaret Mitchell is the genius behind all things Gone With the Wind.

"She's not here."

Ashley Wilkes didn't want any confrontation with Rhett today. The two of them had existed in a perpetual state of avoidance, not exchanging more than polite pleasantries for years. Only once, just once, had both men actualized the mutual hatred they had for each other in physical contact.

When Rhett left Scarlett all those years ago, she was, in no uncertain way- lost. She went through the motions of her life as if on auto-pilot. Get out of bed – check. Shower- check. Eat – check. Take the kids to school – check. Go into the office- check.

Ashley hated this pale copy of Scarlett. His own world had just shattered with the passing of his wife. He needed the vivacity and vigor of his oldest friend to get him through the hell that was his life. His pitiful life- a pseudo life, alone with his son, without her. Mornings spent without her singing and cheerily talking to him while she made Beau's lunch for school. Nights without the sound of her sweet laughter as they watched old movies together. He would never see her face again or hear the animation or sing-song tone her voice would take on when she was excited. If he closed his eyes, he could still hear her. Hear her as if she was still there with him and not rotting six feet under in the cemetery next to St. Patrick's church.

 _"And then you know what? I just told her that she was wrong and that I was right. Just like that! Can you believe it, Ashley?! Of course, Scarlett said I should have called Diane some of the very colorful words she is so fond of using, but I was quite proud of myself."_

She had been told consistently throughout her life that she was often too kind and needed to stand up for herself. She was so happy that she firmly corrected Diane Parks, the 3rd grade teacher across the hall from her classroom on the correct fire drill procedure for their hall. He would never forget the brightness in her eyes, or the way she stopped what she was doing and looked Ashley right in the eyes as she spoke, her debilitating shyness long gone.

His house, once filled with the sweet smell of muffins or cupcakes and filled with sunlight filtering in through the delicate lace curtains, had become a mausoleum. He refused for anyone to clean or move anything that she had touched for fear that her smell and presence would be gone. He blamed himself that is was somehow his fault that she had lost the battle with cancer and actively sought out ways to punish himself. He had been married to the most wonderful woman he had ever met in his entire life, and he had treated her abominably. He had been unfaithful to her, he had lied to her, lusting after other women, and secretly harbored resentment and anger at her for having so much pain during sex- a horrible symptom caused by PCOS. He felt he didn't deserve to live, that it should have been he that died. He deserved it – not Melly.

Beau, their only son, had become a stranger to him. Neither father nor son had much to converse about apart from their mutual grief. The nights were the worst. At least during the day, he could fill his mind with work or some other task. Nights with Beau were solemn affairs spent eating whatever they could whack in the microwave and eat in front on the television. Anything was fine. They weren't picky when it came to food. Cereal, a tin of corn, maybe days old pizza- it didn't matter. They ate it all the same: in silence as they pretended to stare intensely at whatever mind-numbing program was on.

His bright spot of the day would be seeing Scarlett. She was so beautiful and expressive. Even if she was filled with frustration and anger at him, screaming at him that he needed to pull himself together for Beau's sake, he didn't care. Her passionate fury made him remember that life was still worth living. But now, she too, was gone.

He hadn't had any real interaction with her in weeks. They occupied the same building, but went days without seeing one another and almost a week without any communication other than the polite pleasantries of good morning, how was your day, and good night. He gathered up the nightmare of numbers he had created on his laptop and walked toward her office on the other end of the floor – opposite his. This wasn't the first time he had tried to bring her out of her comatose existence.

"Scarlett, I think I've made a mess of these ledgers again. I'm awful at Excel. Do you mind taking a look?"

Ashley waited in anticipation. Her typical reaction would be one of over-exaggerated irritation.

 _"How many times do I have to tell you Ashley!? Do NOT mess with the formulas I've created! Just enter the damn number and nothing else! Don't even hit enter! Just put in the numbers! "_

Instead of her hot-tempered response, she fiddled with her wedding band, turning it around her ring finger with her left thumb. " I'll look at it later Ashley. I don't really need it right now anyway."

He moved into her office, her sacred space where he had never even dared to enter without her permission, leaving his usual spot near the door frame. He had leaned against that door frame thousands of times throughout the years they worked together; the wood had actually worn down and the paint had chipped off.

"Scarlett? You want to talk about it ?"

"No", she firmly stated as she moved from behind her desk to shove file folders and papers into the worn banker's boxes she had used for years. He had implored her to buy some decent file cabinets since the first year they were in business _. "Why buy a file cabinet when these do the job just as well and are free?_ " she would say.

Was she crying? He thought he heard her quiet sobs earlier and studied her lovely green eyes for the proof. They were red and swollen and seemed to tilt up even more at the ends than usual. She was definitely crying.

"Rhett came to get Bonnie for the weekend."

"Is this the first time you've seen him since…well, since you separated?". Ashley couldn't believe his boldness. This was none of his business but he couldn't help himself.

She sat on the old plaid couch that had become more of a dumping ground than a piece of furniture, pushing books and papers aside to create a space for her small body. "No, but this is the first time we actually had a conversation. We were both, I guess you could say, polite to each other in the beginning. I told him that Bonnie needed to take her amoxicillin twice a day since she's still getting over strep. He asked me how much to give her and I showed him. And, I swear Ashley, when I took the measuring cup from his hand and we touched, he looked at me like he used to. I thought, for a moment, that he would say he didn't want a divorce and we could try and make it work. But, as usual, I was wrong. When I gave him the number of the pediatrician, do you know what he told me? He said that he didn't need the number because he was the one to always bring her to the doctor in the first place and that it would be best if I kept the number handy since I didn't usually have anything to do with my children and wouldn't have a clue who their pediatrician was. It's over. It's really over. My marriage is over."

She laid her head in hands and began to cry.

He bent down on his knees, taking her hand in his. "Scarlett, don't cry. Please, my brave girl. Please, don't cry."

She looked up at him, directly in his eyes. Her green eyes shone brightly against her pale skin. Her lips were red and swollen and trembling. She looked so innocent, so vulnerable, so completely alluring.

"Ashley", she whispered in that breathlessly voice that drove him insane with lust.

That was it. That's what did it. Ashley acted without thinking and brought his right hand to caress her cheek and kissed her. He kissed her with the same passion and fury as the night of the party years back when they decided to end things between them for good.

Her lips were as soft as he remembered and he drank them in as if were a dying man lying in a parched desert. He could smell the scent of lavender coming from her hair and the minty residue of toothpaste. Opening his eyes to look at her, he caught a glimpse of the sun's rays reflecting off the enormous seven carrot sized diamond engagement and wedding rings.

"She's married. And she's hurting. She's not thinking clearly ", the thoughts plagued his mind.

Before he could stop and fiercely apologize for his forward behavior, he could feel her kissing him back. He could feel her fingers on the back of his neck, demanding more of his kisses. She needed him as much as she needed her. She pulled him towards her as she laid back on the tattered sofa. He kissed her neck and collarbone, causing her to whimper a response.

"Ashley, please. Help me forget."

He nervously fumbled with the buttons on her blouse before feeling his body being forcefully lifted from on top of her. Immediately, a vice- like pressure was felt on the side of his head. He was confused - seeing faded images of lights and movement. He could hear whooshing sounds as if he were surrounded by the ocean's waves and he thought he could hear Scarlett screaming and a low growling sound before he lost all consciousness.

Ashley awoke to the pin prick laser light being shone into his eyes. " Sir, can you hear me ? " a pimpled and pock- marked EMT was asking him. " Do you know where you are? "

He struggled to sit up only to be forced down by the heavy feeling of nausea.

"I'm at work". The way he said it, it sounded more like a question than a statement.

In the corner of the room, Scarlett's voice could be heard. She was explaining to someone official what had happened. It was either the EMTs or the police, Ashely didn't know- he could only hear the static- filled voices coming through the two-way speakers.

"Yes, my husband and I recently separated."" It's been a very emotional time for both of us." "No, my husband would've not harmed Ashley under normal circumstances"." This is my fault. He found me in a rather complicated situation with another man. How would you expect him to react?"

Had Rhett walked in? Had it been he who lifted his body off of Scarlett and threw him to the ground like a rag doll? And was Scarlett defending him? Ashley was confused and the unanswered questions only caused his head to pound even harder. Turning his head to the left, he vomited on the EMT taking his blood pressure.

The EMT, totally unfazed from being vomited on (did that happen a lot he wondered), told him that he probably had a concussion and that they wanted to take him to hospital just to be sure he was okay. Ashley tried to listen to them and focus on what they were saying but his attention was drawn elsewhere.

Scarlett hadn't even given him a glance. She never once even inquired if he were okay. Her complete attention was on Rhett.

Rhett, seated on the very same sofa that Ashley had been thrown off of, looked like a caged animal with his arms pulled back in handcuffs. His normally impeccable dress and demeanor had become that of a wild man. His bloodshot black eyes were firmly fixated on Scarlett. From the wordless exchange between Rhett and Scarlett, Ashley knew that he never stood a chance. She loved Rhett as fiercely as he loved her. Their separation would never end in a divorce- regardless of what they said. And as Ashley was wheeled out of the office and into the ambulance, Scarlett stayed behind, talking softly to Rhett as she smoothed back the stands of his hair that had fallen into his face.

"I'm sorry, Rhett. I'm so sorry.", Ashley could hear her say. At that moment, he decided to truly let Scarlett go. To let her go from his daily life, his thoughts, fantasies, and desires. He would maintain a professional relationship with her, but would that be all, and he would never interfere in her marriage again.

"I know she isn't here. I came here to talk to you." Rhett said as he took a seat in the worn leather chair across from him. Ashley shifted in his chair nervously. "How can I help you? ", he tersely stated as he kept his eyes looking downward at the keyboard of his lap-top. He wanted Rhett out of his office as soon as possible. He could never understand what Melly saw in him.

 _"Rhett is so kind to Scarlett. I've never seen another man be so attentive to his wife during pregnancy."_ She had practically swooned over Rhett's obsession with Scarlett's diet during her pregnancy with Bonnie. Ashley wasn't convinced that it was love driving Rhett's actions. He contributed his new-found attentiveness to his wife because of his not wanting her to gain too much weight. He made no secret of the fact that he saw Scarlett as no more than a mere pet and wanted to keep her presentable as he paraded her around town.

"I'm sure you've heard about what happened with Ella."

Despite himself, Ashley could feel himself begin to panic. After his last physical altercation with Rhett, Ashley avoided anything to do with Scarlett's marriage. He never offered an opinion and NEVER became involved. It hadn't always been easy, but he stuck to his rule. About three years ago he had noticed a small bruise on Scarlett's left cheek. He was sure that Rhett had given it to her. He wanted, more than anything, to ask her about it; to demand an answer. But he didn't. He didn't pry.

"I only know what my sister told me."

Rhett let out a breath of air that sounded like a huff. He found it hard to believe that Scarlett hadn't run to her "white knight" and unburdened herself of her troubles in the comfort of his weak and feeble arms.

"Has she mentioned anything to you? Scarlett, I mean. She hasn't been herself lately and I'm concerned."

 _Maybe that's because you threw her daughter out of your house like the asshole you are._ Ashley wished he could say the words that came into his brain. "No. Nothing out of the ordinary. She seems quieter, but I don't ask her any questions. I figure if she wants to talk, she'll come to me. "

For some reason, the comfortable way he spoke of "Scarlett coming to him to talk "angered Rhett. If Scarlett wanted to talk, she would come to him – her husband. Not some spineless coward who only lusted after her body and never cared for a thought that came out of her mind.

"Still too scared to make the first move, are you Wilkes?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean."

Rhett pulled out a cigar and bit the tip off. "You'll excuse me if I don't believe that she hasn't said a word to you. Isn't this familiar territory for you? Pouncing on her when she's upset and vulnerable?"

"You can't smoke in here. And if you're implying that I try and force myself on your wife when she's upset…"

"You've done it before! And I don't just mean the time I found you on top of her either. Wasn't it you who suggested she banish me from her bed? Because you couldn't even bear to think of me touching her? The first time I met her was when she was upset because you had told her that the two of you had to stop sleeping together! You were screwing her behind your wife's back. And when you found it too difficult to act on your erotic impulses, you made sure she was keeping herself virtuous for you by making her reject me. Tell me Wilkes, did you confess your immoral sins to your loving wife before she died? "

Ashley hated being reminded of that time in his life. His behavior with Scarlett during his marriage to Melanie repulsed him. He was appalled at the way he continually slept with Scarlett those early years, sneaking into sleazy hotels with her, quietly spending the night with her in her apartment- holding back moans and grunts as he was with his wife's best friend; while her son, his nephew, slept in the room next door. The worse part about it was that it was a regular thing. At least twice a week, despite telling himself that each time would be the last, he would find himself indecently having sex with Scarlett. Each time she would breathlessly say that she loved him as she approached that moment of ecstasy, and he – appallingly would reply that he loved her too.

At Frank and Suellen's engagement party, he went with the steely determination that he would end things with her once and for all. He would tell her tonight. He could not betray his wife any longer. But when he saw her, looking the way she did in her simple green dress, he wavered. As they sat together at the long table with other friends and family, he reached under the long purple table cloth covering them and began to stoke her leg all the way up to her thigh. She turned to face him with the unmistakable look of lust in her eyes. He followed her as she walked into the house, stopping in the hallway to kiss her. As she began to respond, tilting her head back as he kissed the sensitive skin behind her ear, he broke away.

Telling her that they could not continue like this anymore was hard. Seeing her cry and seethe in fury at him was even harder. It took all the determination of a marathon runner to walk away from her. He had determined to forget this incident, only to be confronted by the fact that they had not been alone in the house during this adieu; Rhett Butler has been lying on the large sectional sofa witnessing the entire exchange.

"I know you don't have a high opinion of me , Rhett, and I deserve nothing more than that, but I do not have any clue about your wife's emotional status. Have you tried to ask her about it?"

"Do you think I would be here talking to you if she had told me anything? I ask her what's wrong and she tells me that's she's fine. I ask her opinion on a subject, and she says she's fine with whatever I decide. I tried to provoke her two days ago by mentioning that she looked as though she had put on some weight. Not even a single swear word or a threat to cut my balls off. "

The last time he had suggested such a thing to her, she had taken after him with such anger, hurling whatever she could get her hands on at him. _" Come near me and I'll fucking kill you. I will FUCKING cut your balls off, you degenerate! Take a good look you asshole, because you won't be TOUCHING my fat ass again! "_

"I even apologized to Ella and asked her to come back home, and still – nothing. It's like she's not there. She's almost like she was right after …... the baby."

Ashley thought for a moment. That terrible accident with the baby had been awful for them all. He would never forget how pale and lifeless Scarlett looked as they lowered the tiny coffin into the earth.

"Did she say where she was going today? I've been calling and texting her for hours and it keeps going to voicemail. Even Mammy doesn't know. Ashley, if you know anything, please tell me."

Rhett was desperate. He loved Scarlett in a way that Ashley never could. Loved her with such an intensity he never knew about or had ever felt. Even with his own wonderful wife, Ashley had never experienced that passionate, all-encompassing love.

He folded his hands together and placed his two index fingers on his lips as thought he was deep in thought. "Have you tried calling Frank, or the store? She might be there with Ella. "

"Yes, I spoke with them both. She's not with either of them or at the store. They hadn't heard from her. I even called Sue and asked her if she was at Tara. Nothing."

"What about Wade? Has he heard from her? Maybe Cathleen or Maybelle?"

Rhett shook his head. "Wade has been trying to get in touch with her as well. He said he hasn't spoken with her in days, and usually he speaks to her every night. Ashley, you don't think she did anything stupid or hurt herself, do you?"

Rhett furrowed his brow thinking of all the places his wife could be. "I'm going to go look in her office. Maybe there's something in there that will tell me where she is."

Ashley nodded his head in agreement.

"Rhett, if I hear anything, I'll let you know immediately. I'm sure she's fine."

"Thank you, Ashley."


	15. Chapter 15

The painted plastic of the little dog glistened in the bright fluorescent lights above. He lay there, smiling and motionless, as the giant green body descended upon him.

"No!", Gerry cried in a high-pitched wail before taking on a much deeper and menacing voice, adding," Yes! I cushing everyting in dis worle !"

"Gerry. Not so loud.", his mother admonished him in a sweet voice.

Her brows were furrowed in concentration as she drew the sharp blade up and against the white shards of hair piercing through the wrinkled and translucent skin.

"Me next", said a familiar voice, startling her and almost causing her hand to slip from its precarious location on the tissue-soft skin of the throat.

"Daddy!", exclaimed Gerry as he threw his little body into his father's midsection. Rhett gave a loud "oomph" as his little boy connected with his groin. "Who is this grown man spending time with my beautiful wife?!", he playfully said as he jostled Gerry's little body in the air.

"It's me, daddy! ", Gerry said through giggles.

"I thought you were supposed be a pirate camp?"

The pirate camp Gerry pleaded to attend was ridiculously priced and here he was missing a day. Rhett thought it ludicrous to spend three hundred dollars for one week of play, but didn't protest. It was only one week, and it would be good for Gerry to interact with other kids before starting kindergarten in the fall. Scarlett could handle one week. More than Gerry, she needed transitioning into kindergarten. It wasn't even for an entire day.

 _Don't forget to pick up your little pirates at noon!_ the colorful newsletter warned.

"Nope. Mommy said I could 'pend the day with hers!"

Scarlett gave a slight smile and continued shaving her father as he sat, almost in a catatonic state, his mind in a far-away place that Scarlett couldn't penetrate.

"How'd you know I was here?", she said, her eyes never leaving her father.

Rhett sat on his father-in -law's bed, wrinkling his nose at the musty smell that permeated the entire senior care facility. He made Scarlett swear she's kill him before she ever placed him in a senior home. She swore that she would, never, for one moment, planning to do as he wished. He remembered how she had turned to him during the drive home and explained that she wouldn't have to be the one to kill him. _"I'm sure someone else would be more than willing to take on that task. Ross, for example. "_

"Hugh told me. Was it supposed to a secret?" Rhett said as he pulled Gerry onto his lap.

"No, I was just wondering, that's all "

Gerry tolerated about a minute of his father's cuddles before squirming to get down and back to his toys.

"I called and texted about a dozen times this morning. Why didn't you answer your phone?"

"I'll give one guess about who had my phone. "

Rhett smiled, tickling his son. He glanced on the side table near the bed and could see the sticky fingerprints on her phone. The battery was probably dead, worn down from endless kiddie games and videos.

"Are we ever going to talk about this, Scarlett? "

"About what?"

"About you refusing to talk to me."

Scarlett dipped a yellow cloth into the nearby bowl of tepid water and began removing the film of shaving cream she left behind. "I'm talking to you right now, Rhett."

He walked toward her, putting his hand on her arm, stopping her from completing her task of cleaning her father's face. "Scarlett, please. I'm sorry. I was wrong. I lashed out at Ella and acted like a monster. I'm so very sorry. If this is about Taz and Belle, I'm sorry, but I honestly didn't know if I was his father. The blood test says I'm not, and that was all before I even met you."

She gave him a half smile before gently removing his hand from hers." I know you are. And I can't begin to tell you how happy I am that you too are not biologically related".

"Then please stop ignoring me!"

The loudness of his voice startled his father in law. Loud noises brought back to him thoughts of something terrible, something that only he could see in whatever realm his mind operated in. He became agitated, testing the restraints of his wheelchair and swatting away the hands of his oldest daughter as she tried to calm him. His crystal blue eyes, eyes that were the same color as Bonnie's, opened wildly. His straggled breathing was now more audible. "Ellen!"

"Daddy, it's okay. It's me, Katie Scarlett. "

"Ellen! Where's my wife?! What have you done with her?! Ellen! "

Gerry had seen this happen before. His mother had tried to explain to him that his grandfather was sick and sometimes he became confused and scared, but he was not to be afraid, and that he wouldn't hurt him. Still, for a four-year-old, it remained a frightening thing to behold. He clutched his toys tightly to his chest and stood still in the small space between the bed and the wall.

Rhett moved to assist her but was rebuffed by Scarlett's upturned palm, wordlessly telling him to stop. She was speaking to her father in soft whispers. Calming him with soothing words in a voice he had heard her use with Cat. He then felt the tiny, pudgy fingers of his son reaching for his hand. He pulled Gerry toward him, sitting closely against his little body as they both marveled at the wonderous ability of the woman before them.

"Ellen is on her way. You want to look nice for her, don't you? Now let me finish getting you ready, okay? "Scarlett felt chills run down her spine. She always felt them when she had to lie to her father, a father that didn't even know who she was anymore, and tell him that his long dead wife would be there soon to visit him. Gerald O' Hara, once a strong, boisterous Irishman, now sat peacefully, staring out of the window, placated by his daughter's lies.

"Shit, Scarlett. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to set him off."

"Daddy said a bad word. He said shit, mommy. Shit's a bad word."

Rhett could almost feel the warmth of Scarlett's smile. "You seem to be doing quite a lot of apologizing these days, darling. And yes, that is a bad word. But you don't need to repeat the bad word too when you tattle on him. "

She knew she should reprimand him for tattling, but she always learned such interesting things from Gerry. He had a knack for overhearing things – and for then regaling his mother with his newfound knowledge. Scarlett found this little tool useful, as she lived in a house with two teenage daughters. He was even known to overhear interesting tidbits from his father on occasion.

During one of her more pleasant visits with her sisters, Gerry walked in between the laughing women and began burrowing through his mother's purse. _"Gerry, what are you looking for? I don't have any candy in there."_ Scarlett asked as she gently removed her son's hands from the pristine silk interior of her Birkin bag. _"I'm lookin' for daddy's balls. Daddy told Uncle Will and Uncle Brent that you keep his balls in your purse and I want to play with 'em. "_

"I talked to Ella last night, for a while actually. I apologized and asked her to come home". Rhett cast his eyes downward, onto the top of little boy's curly black head. He breathed in the fresh smell of baby, a mixture of talcum powder, and sweet syrup.

Gerry pressed his little hand against his father's. Rhett remembered Wade doing the same thing.

He had sat on the porch of Frank Kennedy's home talking with Scarlett while her little boy sat on his lap and pressed his small hand against his. _"You have big hands, Uncle Rhett.",_ he said as turned the palms facing each other and then back again.

Frank Kennedy drove him crazy with his needless prattling and exaggerating anxiety over every small detail in life, his inability to make a decision – any decision. He had hoped that with his retirement from the Navy, he would never have to set his eyes on the red-headed buffoon again. But there he sat, day after day almost, at Frank's house, playing with his step-son, cuddling his baby daughter, and falling deeply in love with his wife. He was there so often that Wade started calling him "Uncle Rhett", a term that caused the child's beautiful mother to raise an eyebrow.

One afternoon he had come by, unannounced as usual. A bedraggled Scarlett answered the door. Her black curls were pulled up in a hap-hazard pony-tail revealing the staggering beauty of her youthful twenty-one years. As he walked into the home, he was struck by the chaos. Dirty dishes were piled high in the kitchen sink. The nauseating sound of Elmo blared on the television. Toys, clothes, and papers were everywhere, with Wade rolling through them with the new puppy Frank had brought home as a surprise for the "kids". Ella's high-pitched wails were almost drowning out the red-furred demon on the television - almost. Behind him, Scarlett sat on the foyer step just holding her three-week-old daughter and started crying herself.

"She won't stop crying. I don't know what else to do."

"Here, let me take her."

He cradled the tiny soft bundle in his arms as she waved her tiny fists in protest, continually screaming at the top of her lungs. Scarlett flopped her exhausted body onto the billowy sofa, laid her head back against the cool upholstery, and fell asleep almost instantly.

"What's all this about? "he said as he rocked her. "Pretty girls like you shouldn't make such a fuss. No, they shouldn't. You're such a beautiful little princess too. There. That's a good girl. It's not so bad, is it? "

He had calmed her down and was now able to study the soft features in her little face. Her tiny nose, her long eyelashes, her wisps of red hair. He wished this was his daughter, his baby with Scarlett, his messy house, his rambunctious son, his exhausted wife, his life - not Franks. He had loved Wade and Ella for as long as he loved Scarlett. He wanted nothing more to shoot Frank Kennedy on the spot when he entered his home and took the sleeping baby from his arms and ruffled Wade's brown curls; never before being filled so much with jealousy.

Rhett looked at Gerry's hand. It was smaller than Wade's had been at this age. Yet, he felt the same surge of protectiveness and love he had felt all those years ago sitting on Frank Kennedy's porch.

"She told me you had called. I'm glad you did."

"She still refuses then? To come home?"

"I think it's for the best, Rhett. Let her spend some time with Frank before she leaves for school. She says she's happy, so let's just let it be. Will you help me get him back into the bed?"

She removed the heavy lap blanket spread across her father's lap and grabbed his left elbow and forearm. Rhett did the same on the other side, shouldering more of the old man's weight. It was as if he were supporting the arm of another person, a stranger, not his father- in -law.

He had enjoyed many warm summer afternoons at Tara, seated on the old wicker chairs with glasses of whiskey and Cuban cigars, talking and laughing with Gerald about his colorful past in Ireland, how he came to America as a fugitive and won the land deed to his property in a poker game. He would never forget the way he looked at Scarlett as he spoke about her to him.

 _"Katie Scarlett, a true devil of a child if there ever was one. Do ye know she tole me once that her sister had run away with the circus and all the while had hidden' the poor child in the attic for almost two days? I believed her I did, so taken with drink I was. Thank the good Lord above that Ruth found her 'for a went out with me gun to get her back!"_

He was full of pride when he told these stories. He called her his "puss", encouraged her to be herself and not what others had wanted her to be and enjoyed making her large Irish temper flare.

When Gerald was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, Rhett worried how Scarlett would take it. She was such a daddy's girl. For all her arguments about Bonnie's spoiled behavior with Rhett, she was just as guilty with her own father. But she had surprised Rhett. Like everything in her life, Scarlett bore this trial like all the others she had faced.

When it became clear that additional help was needed for her father's daily care. Scarlett spared no expense to find him the best facility in all of Atlanta. Every Wednesday she came to visit her father, talking to him and acting like he was still the same, as if his mind wasn't cruelly disintegrating in a slow, tortuous manner. Despite what all the experts were telling her, she believed that deep down her father understood her and knew who she was.

She decorated his room with his favorite things, played him the Irish melodies he loved to listen to, set the television channel on the _Travel channel-_ always his favorite. She knew he noticed these small things, and even though he couldn't express it, they made him happy. She saw how his eyes changed, expressing wordless emotion, as she sat next to him with her newborn son in her arms.

 _"This is your grandson, daddy. We named him Gerald Samuel, after you."_

Gerald settled into his hospital bed, coved with familiar blanket and pillows to disguise the industrial nature of the cold, steel-framed bed.

"I can help, mommy. I can help paw-paw get tucked in!"

"You sure can. Thank you, sweetie. Be careful not to push on his tummy, he has a boo-boo there." What other way could she explain to her four-year-old son that his grandfather had a colostomy bag.

Rhett pulled her toward him as their son fumbled with the oversized comforter. She relaxed in his embrace, resting her head against his strong chest. She intertwined her fingers with his, filling Rhett with relief that she did, still in fact, love him.

"Brent called me this morning. Careen lost the baby."

"Damn. That's a shame. I thought she was past that stage in the pregnancy."

"You can lose a baby at any time when you're pregnant. The chances just decrease the farther along you are. She was 22 weeks, so they're going to induce labor tonight. "

Careen, the baby of the O'Hara girls, had been trying for years to have a baby. She had difficulty conceiving and had endured three failed IVF cycles before one finally worked – the last viable egg they had left.

"She's going to have to deliver the baby? Isn't that, well kind of cruel to make her go through that?"

"I don't know. I think it's important for her to see him, to say goodbye."

If anyone deserved to be a mother, it was Careen. She was wonderful with children. It wasn't fair that her two sisters, who hated being pregnant and loudly voiced frustrations about raising their children, could fall pregnant if their husbands so much as looked at them and she couldn't.

" _We lost the baby. They're inducing her tonight_ ", was all Brent could say to her on the phone, his voice breaking as he held in tears.

The news flooded her mind with memories of her own loss, of those precious moments she had with her tiny son before he died in her arms. She remembered how she had counted his little fingers and toes, twenty in all.

The NICU doctors told her that his little body was shutting down. They were doing everything they could for him, but the prognosis didn't look good. _"Is there even a sliver of hope that he'll survive? ",_ she asked, desperate for anything solid enough to cling her hopes to. _"We can always hope for a miracle_ ", was the doctor's reply. She looked at her little boy, lying covered with dozens of tubes and wires connected to him. Even his eyes were covered. Scarlett stroked his leg with the back of her index finder. Her only way to physically touch him was to reach through the circular plastic doors latched to the front of his isolette. " _I want to take him out. I want to hold him."_ The doctor nodded to the nurses nearby to prepare the infant.

 _"No, without the tubes. Just him. I don't want my son's last moments to be in a cold, machine-like bed. He's going to know that he is loved and feel what love feels like for whatever time he has left_."

"Are you going tonight, to be there with her?" He knew she was thinking about their own lost baby. The baby he was too scared to touch. The one who died in his mother's loving arms, never knowing his father. His father that caused his death.

"I thought about it, but I think she and Brent should say goodbye to their baby first. Sue and I will be there tomorrow morning, first thing."

That's why she had kept Gerry with her. Her sister's loss made her think about her own and she could part with her own little baby, not today. Out of her six children, there was something special about Gerry. Even before he was born, things were different. She was different, they were different.

Her other five children were conceived in the spur of the moment. Each time those two little blue lines would show up on a pregnancy test, she would lay her head in her hands and cry, totally devastated. Ashamedly, she had seriously considered terminating her pregnancies with Wade, Ella, and Bonnie, deciding at the last minute to parent instead. When she was pregnant with the baby, her marriage was in shambles and she spent most of the time meeting with attorneys or fighting with Rhett. And two months after she found out she was pregnant with Cat, Melly died. It was only Gerry, her last and final pregnancy, did she truly enjoy being pregnant. He was wanted and loved from the moment she had found out that she was pregnant. Even before, really.

Lovingly, they often called Gerry their little science experiment. She had never actually _tried_ to get pregnant and enjoyed the science and math behind it.

 _"Rhett, come home. "_

 _"Why. What's wrong?"_

 _"I'm ovulating. Come home now! Sperm don't live long, and I want them in there while the egg is fresh."_

 _"I love it when you talk dirty to me."_

The forty weeks she carried Gerry were some of the most pleasurable in her life. She was almost sad when her water broke at three A.M. on the morning of June 1st.

She sighed a little, thinking that her sister would never feel it – the joy of growing a child inside you. Of looking at that wrinkled and misshapen face and thinking how beautiful of a baby you had.

"I have some news." Rhett said pulling her from her thoughts." Mr. and Mrs. Waters have invited us to dinner this weekend- in New York."

"Who? Waters? Are they clients of yours?"

Rhett chuckled, pulling her closer against him. "My beautiful ignoramus, Mr. and Mrs. Waters are the parents of our future daughter-in-law."


	16. Chapter 16

You all are wonderful. Simply and truly wonderful. Keep the reviews coming. It makes me want to write more …. And on a more frequent basis. Happy Thanksgiving !

"Get that fucking stupid look off your face before I throw this shoe at you!"

Rhett sat staring at his wife in stupefaction, his mouth agape at her sudden outburst of anger. "Scarlett, what are going on about? We talked about this yesterday and you were fine. I already said that I'm sorry!".

She forcefully threw her beige Yves St. Laurent slacks into her Louis Vuitton carry-on. Initially, she had wanted the suitcase with the familiar _LV_ monogram on it, but decided on the red Horizon 50 because it cost almost 7 hundred dollars more.

"No, we did not discuss it yesterday. You said you were sorry, that was all. I'm sorry does not count as a discussion, Rhett!".

She momentarily left the room with a huff of frustration, continuing to talk as though Rhett could hear her through the walls. "And besides, what did you expect me to do in there with my father and Gerry?! Seriously, my dad freaks out with loud noises. You honestly think I'd talk about something as serious as this in front of him?! Or Gerry, for that matter! Isn't that the reason for all this in the first place? Us screaming and fighting in front of the kids, traumatizing them and making them hate you?! You really want to do that in front of the baby?!", she yelled as she returned, throwing her reticule filled with make-up on top of the soft duvet cover of their bed.

"So, you're still upset then."

She threw her arms up in frustration. "Yes, damnit! Of course, I'm upset! You threw my daughter out of this house! A house, mind you, that is partially mine! How'd you expect me to feel ?!".

She forcefully opened her side table draw, throwing out items as she rummaged through it, seeking a particular item. "You know what Rhett, you must have severely low self-confidence."

Rhett crossed his right leg over his left, signaling with his body language that he knew this was going to be a long conversation.

"Oh, I forgot that you were a psychiatrist now too.", he said as he rolled his eyes.

She stood before him, her hands placed on her hips as she spoke with authoritative clarity. "Whenever you are faced with something that in anyway resembles criticism, you lash out. You can't handle it and you fly off the handle and act or do something cruel as a form of protection".

"Thank you, Dr. Butler, for that enlightening synopsis of my mental state. Will you please just finish packing so that we can leave?"

Scarlett sat in the chair across from him. She leaned the top part of her body forward, resting her elbows on her knees. "This all stems from your childhood you know."

Rhett threw his head back and groaned. "Been visiting Dilcey on your own, have you? I'm sorry to tell you this my pet, but having regular therapy sessions for years and reading self-help books, doesn't make you a professional therapist."

"Seriously, Rhett. You have a true fear of abandonment. You're so afraid that you're going to be abandoned again in the same way you were when your father threw you out, that when things get complicated, you leave before they can leave you. And, for your information, I don't read the self-help books. I listen to the audiobooks, smart ass."

He lifted his head and looked at her in the eyes. Her understanding of Rhett had increased significantly over the years and never ceased to amaze him. He remained unsure if this was a good or bad thing.

"But don't you see that when you lashed out at Ella and told her to leave, you were doing to her exactly what was done to you? What do I have to do to get it in your stupid, thick head that we are not going to leave you. I am not going to leave you."

She reached out for his hand, grasping it with both of hers. "You don't have to be afraid anymore, Rhett. You're safe."

As much as he tried, he couldn't hold back the stinging tears from filling his eyes. He moved his hand to cup the side of her face. "I don't deserve you".

He was rewarded with a smile and a simple, "We all know that".

"Who's going to make sure I get my meals on time when you both leave?! Who's going to take care of me?! I think you are both very inconsiderate concerning my needs!" Cat demanded as she stood in the doorway to their bedroom. Scarlett resumed her packing as she tried to calmly address her daughter's concerns. She and Rhett had planned on preparing Cat for their absence this weekend together, alone and away from her sisters and brother so that she would better understand. Her frantic display of emotion meant that she had already been privy to the information.

If there was one thing that had caused Scarlett's fiery temper to subside over the years, it was Cat.

" _A child on the spectrum requires calmness and consistency_ ". Those were the words that were firmly impressed on her upon her daughter's diagnosis of Autism. She sat in the pediatrician's office in a state of shock. She thought he would tell them that Cat was just above average for her age and needed little coddling or interaction with other children. The doctor's words had begun to filter through her ears in an incoherent wave of sounds as he listed common characteristics of Autistic children as they age. Rhett, who could clearly still hear, refused to believe that anything was wrong with his daughter and was rudely exchanging dialogue with the physician. She could see the increased animation in his body language as he pointed aggressively at the poor physician.

Wordlessly, Scarlett moved from her chair to sit on the floor next to her toddler and began helping her place the wooden blocks in patterned rows, whispering, "I'll do anything for you, Cat. Even if it kills me, I'll be anything you need me to be."

"Mrs. Fitz will be here, and Ella is spending the weekend here as well. I assure you honey, you will be regularly fed and well taken care of".

Cat began to become more agitated. The disruption to her normal schedule by her parent's absence, was causing her anxiety to rise. "And I like my bread not too toasted. I need it not too toasted. Who's going to make sure it's right if you're not here ?!".

"I will be sure to remind Mrs. Fitz about your bread. Catherine, look at me. Daddy and I will only be gone for two days."

"That's forty-eight hours!"

"Yes, in forty-eight hours, we will be back. I have left Mrs. Fitz with detailed instructions. You do not need to worry. You will be okay."

"But what about Mammy? I don't want Mrs. Fitz, I want Mammy to take care of me!"

"Mammy is spending some time with Aunt Careen. Remember, I told you that she was going to take care of her because she was sick? Cat, you will be okay."

She could see Cat's brain at work, her brows furrowed in deep thought.

"Cat will be okay", she repeated her mother's words out loud to herself.

"Scarlett, maybe we should just cancel.", Rhett began.

"No. We're going. Cat will be okay.", she said calmly once again as her eyes remained on her daughter.

v

"We've reached our cruising altitude of 39,000 feet. We should land at JFK in about two hours, Captain. You're both free to move about the cabin, but please be careful, as we may hit a patch of turbulence."

"Turbulence?", Rhett thought." My whole life has been a patch of turbulence." He glanced over to his wife who was focusing on her lap top. He was certain that, had she had the ability to move the muscles in her forehead, her face would be contorted in a scowl. He wished that she would abandon her unending quest to stay young, constantly filling her face with products that would make the lines and wrinkles vanish.

He found her most beautiful when her freckled face was without make-up, when she would saunter around the house in the early morning wearing her purple rimmed glasses; snuggling up in one of their plushy armchairs clad in her favorite pajama pants and T- shirt, her hair still a tangled mess of black curls spilling over her shoulders as she read the newspaper.

"Sydney, could I have a diet coke please?", Scarlett asked their sole flight attendant. She placed her elbow on the small table in front of her and rubbed her temples. "Have I mentioned to you how totally incompetent Ashley is?".

Rhett smiled. Those words were music to his ears. He didn't care how many times she said it. He would never tire of hearing it. "Only once or twice", he said with a wolfish grin.

"Well, excuse my language, but he is fucking clueless. I swear, if he were ever left in charge of the business for more than a couple of days, I'd be filing a chapter eleven in no time. Thank you, Sydney", She said as she took the glass of diet coke with a sigh.

Rhett wanted to tell her to close the laptop and relax, to forget about work and for God-forsaken Ashley, and enjoy the flight. Maybe it was because he was getting older that he began to appreciate the smaller things in life that were so often overlooked. Here they were, in their private jet, sitting in plush leather seats, served whatever they wished, flying through a clear, blue sky to New York, and his wife was sitting there missing it all.

"Did I tell you that Beau is starting to work with us next week? Hopefully he can undo all the mess his father creates on a daily basis."

Rhett stretched out his long legs in front of him. "Scarlett, I wish you'd put that away."

He knew that Scarlett saw her work as a distraction, an obsession really, created from her lingering fear of sudden poverty. Dilcey had stressed to him during their last counseling session not to dismiss it, but to view it as an indicator of something deeper that was troubling his wife. Just getting out of the house this morning and onto the plane had proved to be more trouble than he had anticipated and was completely stressful.

He almost had to peel his son away from his mother as they tried to make their way to the car. His little hands held onto her blue cardigan in a vice-like death grip.

"I come with you!", he cried as he buried his face in the curve of her neck, leaving behind a sticky reside comprised of tears, saliva, and mucus. No amount of cajoling or appeasement was accepted, and Rhett thought that they may actually have to take Gerry with them. Ella was the one to finally extract his clinging limbs from Scarlett; stating in an authoritative, and very Scarlett-like voice, that they had to go and would be back soon and he was to stop acting like a baby. It was then that Rhett noticed how grown up Ella had become. She really wasn't that little baby he soothed to sleep all those years ago anymore.

To his surprise, Scarlett closed the lid to her laptop at his suggestion and walked over to his chair." Move over, old man" she said as she squeezed into the empty space between his body and the arm of the chair. He welcomed her into his arms, pulling her head onto his chest; willing her to relax. She raised her legs and placed them on her husband's lap and let out a deep sigh. Rhett ran his fingers up and down her back in rhythmic motions until he could feel her breathing become slower and her shoulders relaxing. He placed a kiss on the top of her head and smoothed away the strands of hair that had fallen across her cheeks.

"Just relax. You're safe with me too."

v

Cynthia and Edward Waters shifted in their seats, sipping their half-filled glasses of Chevalier Montrachet as they waited for the illustrious Captain and Mrs. Butler. Aimee had provided them with sparse details of the couple. Simply commenting that they were nice and welcoming to her.

"But what do they **_look_** like, dear? How will we recognize them?"

Aimee frowned at her mother's question. Her mother was a typical Manhattan Matron: condescending and self-righteous. She knew her mother would take one look at Wade's parents and instantly form unjust opinions about them. She had never given much information about Wade's past to her parents. They were always aloof to him, treating him with an air of detached friendliness.

Much to Aimee's trepidation, Wade had insisted he ask her father's permission to marry her. She was terrified that they would verbally attack him, rebuking him for having the gall to even consider marrying their daughter. But, both Aimee and Wade were surprised when her father gave his permission giving Wade's hand a firm handshake and a slap on shoulder that said" Welcome to the family". But beyond her parent's congratulatory smiles and embraces, Aimee could tell they really didn't approve of her marrying a man they considered beneath her.

"Didn't Amelia say they were young?" Edward said before draining the last of his wine with one gulp.

"She said the mother was young looking. It doesn't necessarily mean she is young. The step-father is one of the Butlers of Butler Industries. You know, Butler Enterprises ; the big financing firm?", she said as her husband looked at her with the unmistakable look of confusion.

"Butler Enterprises, Edward. It's part of the S&P 500."

Edward nodded in agreement. He was never one to follow the stock market; unlike his wife, who's health seemed to fluctuate with the status of the Dow Jones Average.

"His worth is astronomical, but since Wade is not his biological son, I'm assuming that any inheritance he would receive from him would be quite lacking compared to his other children."

"Wasn't he involved in some sort of scandal a while back? Something to do with pornography?", Edward questioned.

"Yes, with an escort service or along those lines. He was even involved in that whole Heidi Fleiss debacle."

Once Wade and Aimee's engagement had become a reality, Cynthia had set out to discover everything she could about this young man who could possible become her son-in-law. There were very little public records concerning Wade in the office vital statistics. She found that he was illegitimately born on January 13, 1995 to Katie Scarlett O'Hara- then only 17 and Charles Hampton Hamilton who was deceased. He had a squeaky clean criminal background as well, with nary even a traffic violation. It wasn't Wade that was a cause for concern for her; it was his family.

For starters, his maternal grandfather immigrated to America from Ireland as a felon and quickly began having altercations with the law. The majority of his violations were misdemeanors for public drunkenness and assault, but still. Cynthia knew her friends would secretly love to marinate in the fact that her son- in-law came from an Irish peasant background, spreading the malicious gossip all throughout the city. Of course, they would say that it didn't matter one bit who Wade's grandfather was, but Cynthia knew better. She heard the snide remarks they made behind each other's backs, about their supposed "friends". She herself was an active participant in them.

And then there was his mother, her daughter's probable future mother-in-law, the potential other grandmother to her grandchildren. She indeed was young. Very young to have a son as old as Wade. At 39, Katie Scarlett O' Hara Butler had been married twice and was the mother to five children from three different men. From what she could gather from online information, Cynthia could see that the young Mrs. Butler had several encounters with the law in Georgia over the years and only been charged with two. Both were assault charges made against her by someone named Susan Benteen. She was the co-owner of two very successful businesses in Atlanta and was known for her "no nonsense" business practices that had earned her the title of "The O'Hara" among the leaders of Atlanta industry. The pictures that were available to Cynthia showed her to be lovely, but only in the grainy way pictures appeared in publications. There was no shortage of detractors for her. There were numerous negative reviews against her, both of a professional and personal nature. One in particular stuck out in Cynthia's mind.

 _"Scarlett O' Hara is the worst person on the planet. She is a downright whore who uses what's between her legs to get what she wants. She is completely immoral and the LAST person on EARTH that I would ever do business with."_

The reviewer had left only their initials as a clue to their identity: IWK.

"Is this them?", Edward asked as he nodded his head in the direction of the approaching couple.

v

"Hey, you.", Ella answered as she saw Taz's name appear on her phone.

She closed her eyes and smiled as Taz's smooth Cajun drawl filled her ears. "Just checking on you to see how everything is over there and that ya'll didn't kill each other."

"Everything's fine. Cat and my little brother are both sound asleep. Bonnie is still awake of course, but she can take care of herself…well, sort of.", she laughed as she flopped onto her four-poster bed. Her bedroom was exactly the way that she had left it.

"How'd the conversation go with your mom and Rhett?"

Ella snuggled under the heavy down of her cream comforter. "Fine. Except that I had to have the most awkward conversation of my life with my mother."

Ella found it very difficult to maintain eye contact with her mother as she listed the numerous types of birth control and her own personal experience with them.

 _" I was raised in the Catholic Church and was always told that using birth control pills were a sin and that I was to abstain from sex until I was married. I had no clue about anything having to do with pregnancy prevention and as soon as I started having sex, I ended up pregnant with your brother. I used condoms for the most part after Wade was born, but they only work if you use them, hence- your arrival. I was stupidly convinced by Rhett to try the withdrawal method after we were married, which is the WORST form of birth control you can use, and was pregnant with Bonnie within a few months. And Cat and Gerry are the results of pure unprotected sex. So, you Ella must decide which type of birth control you want to use. There's also the pill, the shots, diaphragms, cervical caps, the IUD, and those little things they put in your arms. These are just the ones I used. In the meantime though, I'd like you to use these until you make up your mind."_

Ella sat in stunned silence as her mother handed her the massive pack of condoms.

"They didn't say a word about you not going away to college?" Taz asked.

"Well, I decided to tell them that when they come back. It shouldn't be too shocking to them. It's not like I'm NEVER going to college. I'm just not going away to THAT college. And besides, they'll have to understand that I could never go to a school that far away from my husband."

Ella smiled. Apparently in their haste to make it to the airport in time, her mother and Rhett hadn't noticed the shiny gold wedding band on her left ring finger.


	17. Chapter 17

_Sorry an update has taken so long. I'll try and update on a more frequent basis. No promises though …._ _?_

Beau shifted in his seat as he tried to make awkward conversation with the young woman sitting across from him. This was their third date and topics of conversation were dwindling quickly.

Three weeks ago, he agreed to be set up by his friend Napoleon with one of his girlfriend's co-workers.

 _"Listen Beau, she's hot. Just do this for me. Will it kill you to double date with Crissy and me?"_

Normally, Beau would refuse. He hated blind dates, but after persistent pleading by Napoleon, he agreed to go on one "double date" with the lady in question. He was happy to discover that Crissy's friend was very easy on the eyes and before he knew it he was actually enjoying himself. He had asked her out again the following weekend to see a movie. They sat together in peaceful silence during the film and chatted freely together on the ride home. They parted ways after a pleasant kiss and a little fondling in the front seat of his old Ford; agreeing to meet for dinner the following weekend.

The time though, the conversation seemed forced.

"Crissy told me today that she and Leo broke up."

Beau was glad she started up a new topic. Sitting on the rooftop bar of Angelo's silently having drinks with a girl was embarrassing; especially when the other people on the rooftop seemed to be having such a good time.

"I knew that wouldn't last too long. Crissy was too good-looking for Leo."

He reproached himself instantly. Maybe he shouldn't have mentioned that Crissy was good-looking. Were they a "thing" now? Should he not mention other women to her? He changed the topic immediately.

"I closed a deal today with the city.", he said in an overly excited tone.

"Really ?!", she said with genuine enthusiasm.

She really was so nice. Beau wished he could like her more. She was everything everyone expected him to fall for: caring, gentle, pretty. But something wasn't there. Something between them was missing. But what?

"Yeah, a big one too. Hamilton and Kennedy builders will be supplying all the lumber for the new housing development going up in December."

She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "That's wonderful news, Beau. I'm so proud of you."

Beau's inner dialogue continued to berate him. _"Why can't you fall for this girl? What the hell is wrong with you?"_

Beau dutifully smiled at her as she let her hand linger on his. He noticed how when she smiled, her high cheekbones rose, making her large brown eyes form into diagonal crescents. She was one of those people who had an infectious grin, and Beau's forced smile became genuine. He relaxed his shoulders and allowed himself to savor the moment.

Why was he busy trying to define his feelings for her? What was he expecting? Lightning bolts? The sounds of the string section of an orchestra? This was only their third date. They were just getting to know one another. Who's to say that this mellow fondness he felt for her wouldn't transform into a smoldering, all-encompassing love through time?

Beau brought up her hand to his mouth and kissed it. The blush that spread across her cheeks at a result made her look beautiful.

The left side door of the bar opened as people filtered in and out, allowing for the pounding and electric sounds from the first floor to trickle in. In leaked the sound of high pitched laughter. A familiar laugh. Beau listened again as the sounds re-appeared during intervals of opening the door.

"Excuse me for a second. I'll be right back.", he said removing his hands from hers and placing his napkin on the table. He shook his head and gave an angry sigh as he was able to recall where he had heard that laugh before. That high-pitched squeal could only have come from one origin.

It wasn't hard to follow the peals of laughter to the culprit. Just as he suspected, the sound came from an individual surrounded by throngs of people; all drunk and stumbling over each other. He couldn't see past the sweaty bodies that circled hungrily around the perimeter, but it didn't matter, he knew exactly who it was in there. Forcefully, he pushed aside people to get a better view of the scene; catching the eye of the source of all the sounds of merriment.

"Why if it isn't Beauregard Wilkes. My all- time favorite buzz kill."

"How'd you get in here, Bonnie? And are you drunk?", he asked as he grabbed the drink in her hand, smelling the contents to check for alcohol.

"I got in the same way you did…by using the front door. ", she laughed a flirty laugh at her own joke.

She sauntered towards him and took her drink back from his hand, looking at him through her long eyelashes as she walked in one fluid like movement. If he didn't know any better, he would swear that she was flirting with him.

"You do know this is a bar, right? A place to have fun. You know, fun - the thing that you're allergic to?"

She leaned back on the red velvet settee, aligning her body in a languid pose as she crossed one leg over another. She rested her right elbow and forearm along the back of the chair as she sipped whatever the fruity concoction was that filled the plastic cup. Beau wondered if she knew how seductive she was being. He couldn't imagine that a sixteen-year-old girl could purposely act this suggestive.

She's probably high, he thought. Aunt Scarlett's latest tirade was over finding marijuana in her room.

 _"Where did I go wrong as a parent? I have one child marrying a tree-hugging liberal, another who MARRIED my husband's ex-mistress' son, and one who is completely out of control! Do you know I found bags of pot in Bonnie's room last week? Never have children, Beau! "_

The low lighting wasn't affording him much of an opportunity to look at her eyes. He could see that the lids were heavier; each time she blinked it looked as if it took an overt effort. Her thick lashes rested on her porcelain cheeks longer than was expected every time she closed her eyes. With her eyebrows lifting each time she opened them, it was as if they were working hard to pry open the heavy lids of her beautiful blue eyes.

He crossed his arms in frustration. "Do you know what you look like?"

"You mean, besides my _wonderful_ mother? Tell me Beau, what _do_ I look like?"

"Is this guy bothering you, Bon?". A tall blonde wearing a pink polo shirt and khaki shorts squeezed next to her. Beau sneered at the familiarity that this "frat-boy" had with Bonnie. Who was he to sit with his pretty-boy tanned body pushed up against her? And calling her Bon? Who did he think he was? It suddenly occurred to Beau that this mystery guy could possibly be Bonnie's boyfriend. At 16, she was old enough to date and had no shortage of suitors; why wouldn't she have a boyfriend? He thought about it further - thought about this guy's hands on her, his lips meeting hers, whispering sweet sentiments in her ear. Or maybe he was rough with her? Maybe he was the type of guy that used force on women, demanding she succumb to his sexual advances?

Bonnie threw her head back in laughter. "No, Georgie. He's not bothering me. Beauregard here has no impact on me whatsoever."

"Georgie. What a girly name.", Beau thought. No real man was named _Georgie_. He failed to remember that his own father was in fact, named George.

Beau could feel the intense stares of the posse of idiots surrounding Bonnie.

"Beauregard works for my mother. What is it you do there again Beau? Cut the lumber and sweep the warehouse?"

"Can you get me a job there ?!" A tall boy with his dark hair pulled into a "man- bun" asked. "I would do ANYTHING to be able to look at Bonnie's fine-ass mother all day long!".

Bonnie rolled her eyes and ignored the comment about her mother. As far as she was concerned, she didn't have a mother- or a father for that matter. She was an orphan.

 _Most mornings her mother is up with the dawn, planning out her day in minute detail over a steaming cup of coffee. But this morning she was nowhere to be found. Last night her mother found a bag of weed shoved in between the pajamas pants neatly folded on the shelf in her armoire. As a result of this discovery, Bonnie's sweet sixteen birthday party was cancelled, and her mother said she would not be getting a car until she could prove that she was "responsible "and could make better choices. Bonnie patiently listened to her mother's punishments, believing that in the end, her daddy would find a way to soothe her mother and she'd be driving her new cherry red Mustang by this weekend. Besides, it wasn't like she ran off and got married like Ella. What was a little pot when compared to what her older sister did?_

 _However, she was told by her grandmother this morning that her parents were both in agreement and she would remain without a vehicle for the foreseeable future. She needed to talk to her parents right away. They were obviously having some crazed joint meltdown and Bonnie needed to talk some sense into them._

 _" Mom ! Where are you ?" she yelled along the upper corridor of the large house._

 _She came to her parents' bedroom and turned the elaborate door knob to enter. It was locked. She used her longest fingernail to turn the latch to open the door. What was the purpose of looking doors in this house when even Gerry knew how to pick them open ?_

 _"Are you seriously not going to get me a car for my 16_ _th_ _birthday, Mom ?! I thought you were joking!"_

 _Her father pulled the plush comforter up around his waist and covered his wife's naked upper body with his own. "Get out of here Bonnie!"._

 _"Mammy said you were serious and are NOT buying me a car! This is bull-shit, Dad! I can deal with not having a sweet sixteen, but you promised me that I could have a car! "_

 _She heard her mother's voice coming from under her father "Bonnie! Get out! The door was locked for a reason!"_

 _"I don't care! When can I get a car, mom?!", she yelled undeterred._

 _Scarlett's body sprung up as she pushed her husband off her. Yanking the sheets up to cover her exposed breasts, she shot her daughter a look of daggers._

 _"Listen to me right now. You are NEVER to come into this room again when the door is locked! Your behavior is absolutely atrocious!"_

 _"Well you shouldn't be having sex in the morning anyway! What if I were Gerry?"_

 _"Where and when I have sex is my business. This is my house and I can have sex on the roof if I want to. Contrary to what you think, you are not the queen of this house. You are NOT getting a car. You're NOT getting ANYTHING, do you understand?! End of discussion! We are so disappointed with you. I find bags of marijuana stuffed in your armoire and you have the NERVE to come in here and demand a car?! You better get out of this room right now, little girl, before I get up and yank every hair out of your head! "_

"I love this song!". She jumped up from the settee in excitement as a song completely foreign to Beau was blasted across the dance floor. "C'mon Georgie, let's dance!", she said as she pulled him onto the dance floor. Bonnie swayed drunkenly to the beat of the music with Georgie moving with her. He placed his hands on her waist and moved in so close behind her that her body was pressed almost fully against his.

Beau glared at them in silent fury. He told himself that he was upset at the choices Bonnie was making and was there to protect her; trying to convince himself that tension building up inside him was anger and not jealously. He could feel his jaw clenching and his back teeth grinding forcibly as he continued to watch her. Her movements were now slow. She moved against Georgie with slow circular movements. Georgie, exhilarated with her rhythmic movements against his groin, wrapped his hands tighter around her. While Georgie's eyes were fixated on her suggestive movements, Bonnie locked eyes with Beau. Her eyes never left his during this erotic display. She could see the rapid movements of his chest as his breathing became more labored.

The moment she slightly lifted her chin, narrowing her cat-like eyes at him and took the corner of her bottom lip in her teeth spurred Beau into action. He moved toward her, not caring who his big shoulders smashed into along the way.

"We're leaving.", he said as he grabbed her by the wrist.

Georgie pushed Beau with all the force he could muster. "Hey!", he shouted as Beau pulled Bonnie off the dance floor.

"Get out of my fucking way!" Beau's voice sounded like a roar- deep, loud, and frightening. Georgie and most of the people surrounding them gave Beau a wide berth as he forced an unwilling Bonnie out the side door.

v

"I'm really sorry about this , Ann."

After physically removing Bonnie from the dance floor, Beau stormed out on to where Ann was waiting for him on the rooftop bar and told her they had to leave. Anne didn't question his odd behavior or the reason why he his hand was clamped down on the slender arm of combative teenager. True to her normal passive behavior, she simply said " sure" and gathered up her things, following Beau and his angry, captured prey to his truck.

"Let go of me, you stupid hillbilly! You can't force me to leave with you! This is kidnapping!" Bonnie was slapping him across his back with her free hand. Ann gave him a half smile, one that didn't reach all the way up to her eyes. "It's okay. "Right then, Beau felt a sharp pain shooting up his arm.

"Ahh!", he seethed as he sucked in his breath between clenched teeth. "She bit me! Get in this damn truck right now, or so help me I'm going to…". He forcefully pushed Bonnie on to the back seat and slammed the door shut in frustration. Only Bonnie could cause him this much frustration and aggravation. Somehow, she had a talent for knowing exactly what to do at exactly the right moment to get him to this point. Although he wouldn't necessarily call it a talent. Bonnie fell face forward onto the dirty brown fabric that covered the back seat of Beau's truck. _I'll just close my eyes for a second_ , she thought as her face felt increasingly heavy.

Beau huffed as he pulled his seatbelt across his chest. Ann looked away as he shifted the gears in his old pickup. The way his face was screwed up in an angry scowl frightened her. In actuality, her feelings about it frightened her- the sensation she felt when he looked like that thrilled her. The way his brow furrowed in frustration as his jaw tightened, the look of firmness in his arms as he gripped the steering wheel: she was enthralled – excited even. This is what she craved. Not the sweet timid nature of sensitive men, the ones who took extra care not to offend her. Ann could feel the blush climbing up her cheeks as she thought about how forceful Beau was with his cousin… or whoever she was…a minute ago. She smirked a little as she felt quite naughty at this thought. Was she some sort of deviant that thrills in physical force and pain? Could Beau be her country version of Christian Grey?

Her mother would be scandalized if she could read her mind right now. It had been so long since she had sex and even longer since she had _good_ sex. A very graphic image of sex with Beau entered into her mind and made her smile. Come to think of it, sex had been on her mind quite a lot lately. This past Tuesday, while taking some notes from her boss on a potential investment opportunity, she wondered what he would be like in bed. He was so swarthy and debonair that it made her pulse quicken to be alone with him for too long. She pictured him to be somewhat of a sexual maestro, a picture of sheer perfection that played women like willing Stradivarii. She could not, however, picture him having sex with his frigid bitch of a wife. She could see them in bed together, in the boring missionary position, with the lights off and only half- way undressed. Mrs. Butler would be demanding he follow her precise instructions on giving her an orgasm and Mr. Butler would be quietly following her orders.

Since manhandling her the day they were first introduced, Ann had seen a good bit of Scarlett Butler.

She came and went to the office with regularity, never staying longer than thirty minutes or so. Sometimes, Ann would hear raised voices coming from his office and look wide-eyed as Scarlett would throw open the office doors and leave in a huff of frustration. Other times, before leaving, Scarlett would linger in his office doorway to kiss him goodbye; adjusting her skirt and stockings as she walked toward the elevator- never once even glancing over to Ann as she exited. In actuality, Ann was in awe of her. If she weren't so terrifying, Ann would have asked her to give her lessons.

Ann rested her hand on top of Beau's; a simple gesture of affection and modest intimacy. _What a deception I am_ , she thought, as she sweetly smiled at Beau while gently touching his hand all the while screaming in her head that she wanted him to fuck her brains out.

"Are you two on some sort of date? "

Bonnie leaned over the back of the front seat and placed her upper body between them. "Because if you are, I can't imagine a worse date than this." She turned her head and spoke directly to Ann. "You do realize that you're an accessory to my kidnapping and that you're both going to jail."

Beau moved his hand from underneath Ann's to turn the music playing in the radio louder. "If anyone is going to jail, it's you. We're not the ones sneaking into clubs and drinking while underage. Not to mention that you probably have drugs on you right now, you little pot smoker."

"Shut up, Beau. And don't give me any of your holier than thou crap either. I know you and my brother used to get high behind the field house at Tara. And I know you both would sneak out late at night to meet up with girls too. So, spare me."

The twang of Willie Nelson filled the enclosed space of the cab of the truck. _"On the road again. I just can't wait to get on the road again …"_ Bonnie loudly groaned. "This crap is making my ears bleed. How can you listen to this?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, do you want me to put on the Wiggles? Or Moana?", Beau taunted her. Hs knew she hated it when he would tease her for being a naïve little girl. "You know what, I think I might just have a Barney CD in here somewhere."

"Fuck you, Beau!" she screamed as she kicked the back of his seat.

Ann started to laugh at the sudden burst of anger from the girl but then realized that she had been witness to the same type of outbursts recently. The girl seemed familiar- she even looked familiar. Had they met before? Surely Ann would have remembered; the girl was gorgeous. She would have never forgotten the beautiful contrast between her black hair and fair skin. And her eyes, she had beautiful eyes. They were such a piercing shade of blue that they alone would have stuck out in her memory.

"Have we met before?", Anne said while turning around to address the beautiful, hate-filled creature in the back seat.

"You look very familiar."

"I doubt you would have met the princess back there, Ann. Her royal highness doesn't mingle with us common folk, do you, Princess?"

Bonnie kicked the back of his seat again. "I mingle with everyone. I only don't mingle with fuck-tards like you!"

"Language! What would Daddy say about his little princess, Bonnie Blue Butler, saying words like that? "

Butler? Ann's mind was snapped to attention at the name. Was she related to Rhett? The last thing she needed was one of his family members crying to her boss that she was an accessory to her kidnapping. She'd lose her job for sure, maybe even be arrested. She briefly found comfort in the fact that Bonnie didn't know her name, but then remembered that Beau had used her name several times in her presence. She was now easily identifiable. Ann's only hope was to know make nice with her. Pretend to be her friend so that any tales carried to Rhett would be positive.

" I love your dress. Your whole outfit really. You are just as pretty as can be. I bet all the boys can't take their eyes off of you."

Bonnie smiled. Flattery was the fastest way to her heart. "Thank you. You're very pretty too."

Beau's fingers tightened their grip on the steering wheel. He didn't like to be reminder of the throngs of boys that "couldn't take their eyes off" Bonnie. He felt the heat of anger fill his chest as he thought of the numerous hormone filled boys that fantasized about what her perfect body looked underneath her clothes.

"Bonnie is the spitting image of her mama. They're practically identical; except for their eyes. Her mom's are prettier." He knew she would be irritated by this and the talk of boys would cease as she would undoubtedly fire back at him.

"You know, Beau, I think you have some sort of twisted crush on my mom. I always knew you were sick in the head, but to have romantic feelings toward the woman who practically delivered you is a new low."

Beau sighed loudly. "Yes, you've finally figured it all out. I'm madly in love with Aunt Scarlett."

Ann felt her stomach drop. If Bonnie's last name was Butler and her mother's name was Scarlett, then she had to be Rhett's…. daughter…. And if her mother's name was Scarlett, the ice queen was .. her mother…! Ann wished she could disappear. No wonder she recognized the sudden outburst of anger. Bonnie had the same facial features, the same nose, mouth, hair, eyebrows even. "So, you two are related?", she questioned.

"Don't make me barf. I'm not related to Beau in any way! My older brother is his cousin. His father and the dickhead's mother were brother and sister. My brother and I have different fathers." Bonnie always added as much information as she could right away. She knew that people would silently wonder hoe Beau could be Wade's cousin and not hers.

"That makes sense"

Wade shoved the stick shift into park in front of Ann's townhouse. "Stay here." he said to Bonnie as he got out of the truck to help Ann out and walk her to do the door.

"Like I'd even drive off with this piece of junk."

"At least I **_have_** a vehicle.", he shot back.

Bonnie climbed over the back of the truck's wide bucket seats into Ann's recently vacated spot and watched as Beau slowly walked Ann to her doorway. He looked shy and nervous, with his hands shoved into the front pockets of his jeans. They lingered on the front step for a while in awkward conversation before Beau pulled Ann toward him and kissed her. Right there on the lips. A deep kiss.

Bonnie felt an anger like she'd never felt before rising up. Her cheeks felt as if they were burning and her body was filled with an exuberant amount of adrenaline. She wanted to run up that walkway and beat them both within an inch of their lives. She wanted to scream at them, spitting insults and degradations, claw Ann's eyes out, and choke the life out of Beau. She pushed on the truck's horn with all her might, jolting them both with its sudden loudness.

"Alright!" Beau yelled at the continual whine of the horn. Bonnie never moved her hand from the horn. She was going to keep pressing it until he came back to truck. So what if she woke up the entire neighborhood. She didn't care. She'd think about that tomorrow.

He said a quick goodbye to Anne and rushed to the truck.

"What the fuck is wrong with you ?!" He pushed Bonnie off the horn.

"Bring me home. I hate you."


	18. Chapter 18

_Thanks so much for all your kind reviews. They really do mean a lot! Send me more! They make me write faster...and better! My interpretation of Scarlett and Rhett is based on how their lives had been shaped by the circumstances they faced – just in a modern world. They are both so wonderfully created by the literary genius, MM, that the fit quite well in twenty-first century America. Regardless of the time, be it 1865 or 2018, she is a strong heroine for women of all ages and has always been the stronger of the pair of she and Rhett._

 _As for the guest that requested some steam between our favorite couple, this is the best I could do_ _?_

"Do you have any idea how tempted I am to leave you like this?"

Scarlett narrowed her green eyes. "I'll kill you.", she said in a low, serious voice as she pulled against her black, velvety restraints.

"I could even sell tickets. Come take a whack at Scarlett O'Hara for a thousand bucks" he laughed.

"Untie me right now! I should have never agreed to this!" Her cheeks were still flushed with color from their recent lovemaking.

Rhett crawled across their massive bed, feeling the cool silk under his knees. For once, he appreciated the overwhelming "girly-ness" of their bedroom. Under the gleam of the low lighting, the room, which in daytime looked like a nauseating combination of Edwardian and whorehouse, became a silken boudoir of feminine sensuality. Reaching across to where the restraints were tethered, he couldn't help but run has callused hand over the rise of his wife's soft porcelain breasts.

"Do you really want me to untie you?" he said kissing her neck and running his hand along her inner thigh.

Scarlett moaned, arching her back in response.

"I didn't think so."

For the first time in years, they made love again – twice in the same night.

"I needed that", she sighed drowsily as she lay in her husband's arms. She needed all the fortification she could get to get through tomorrow. She had already planned to take a Xanax in the morning as soon as she opened her eyes and wondered if even that would be enough. A night of mind blowing sex just might be the top-off she needed. She wondered if she would have time in the morning to have a quickie with her husband; a booster shot of sorts. Nothing could calm her down and set her in a good mood like an orgasm so intense that her head felt as if it would explode.

Tomorrow she would go wedding dress shopping with her daughters. She should be looking forward to this rite passage with her girls, but instead she was dreading it. Much to Scarlett's dismay, her darling, wonderful daughter had invited her new mother- in- law to come along.

v

"How's it feel, Cat? I made sure that I picked out one without a tag." Ella smiled as her youngest sister carefully inspected the fabric of her junior bridesmaid dress. The material was a soft cotton, purposefully plain and without embellishment. Cat ran her hands along the sides as she appraised how she looked in the large floor length mirror.

"It's suitable."

Bonnie sauntered out of the dressing room, her hands clutching the sides of her dress to prevent herself from tripping over the hem. She nudged Cat from the pristine spot in front of the mirrors, gazing at the image reflected back at her. "I love the color, Ella. As your maid of honor, I approve."

"Alright Catherine", Scarlett appeared holding four shoeboxes "if you tell me that these shoes won't work, I suggest you go bare…." Scarlett gasped at the sight before her. She was stunned by the beauty of her daughters. "You both look so beautiful. All grown up."

Ella could see her mother swallowing back her tears. Since her graduation from high school four months ago, she had seen her mother cry more than she had in her entire life: tears of hurt, frustration, anger, and fear. Now she could add tears of nostalgia.

Her mother had literally fainted when she told her that she and Taz had eloped. She would never forget how all the men in the room, her new husband included, ran to her aid as she lost consciousness. Ella wiped her mother's face with a warm cloth, gently slapping her cheeks as others nervously ran about trying to rouse her. When she opened her eyes, she locked her fiery green eyes on her daughter and whispered, " _I'm going to kill you."_

After all the commotion settled and her mother agreed to speak to her again, both families had agreed that even though the pair were legally married, they would still have a traditional Spring wedding in the following year.

"Do you like them, Miss Belle?" Despite Belle's insistence that her new daughter in law call her simply Belle, Ella resisted and always added "Miss" before her name. Belle nodded her head with a smile. "Very nice, Ella."

Ella's "personal attendant", who was in all actuality, nothing more than a sales clerk with a fancy title given to her by the bridal shop, approached the gaggle of women with a massive cloud of white fabric in her arms. "Mrs. Watling, I've selected these gowns based on your preferences and your coloring. Shall we move to the fitting suite to begin trying them on?" Scarlett felt a jab to her heart. _Mrs. Watling_. You stupid bitch, she wanted to scream at the poor woman. Her name is Ella Kennedy! She's a child, not some married woman!

Ella gave an enthusiastic smile. She loved being called Mrs. Watling. "Mama, you and Miss Belle sit here, okay? I want to surprise you. Bonnie, you can go select the shoes for the dresses. Whatever you pick out will be what all the other bridesmaids have to wear too."

"Really ?!" Bonnie's blue eyes lit up with excitement.

"Bonnie" Scarlett began. She gave a quick side glance to where Cat was standing. It was a common phrase in their unspoken language, one that said: _please take Cat with you_.

"Cat, you want to come with me? We can check out shoes for you too." Cat shuffled her feet along the plush gray carpeting following her sister's lead.

"There's something stuck in your hair, honey." Belle said as she reached to remove the sticky adhesive, brushing her hand against Cat's shoulder in the process. "Don't touch me!" Cat screamed as she jumped back in terror. She was already in sensory overload with the foreign smells, bright lights, and loud noises of the bridal boutique. Belle shrunk back in mortification at the girl's rejection.

"Come here, baby", Scarlett said softly. Cat stood before her mother in a clear state of agitation. "Miss Belle was only trying to help. She didn't know that you don't like to be touched." Belle noticed that Scarlett was running her fingertips along her daughter's arm as she spoke. "That's my fault, I should have told her. But you may have hurt her feelings when you yelled. I know you didn't mean to, but what is it that we do when we hurt someone's feelings?" Cat turned her body to face the woman standing next to her mother. "I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings. I do not like to be touched, but I will shake your hand." Belle took the little hand that was offered to her and shook it gently. Cat glanced back at her mother for approval.

"Very good, kitty Cat. Now, go along with Bonnie and pick out some pretty shoes."

Scarlett took a seat in one of the large paisley patterned armchairs that lined the viewing area, gesturing to Belle to do the same. "I'm sorry about that. She meant no harm." Belle prayed her body language did not reveal just how uncomfortable she was sitting here with Scarlett. She could count on one hand the times they spent together through the years, none of them were good either. "No worries, Scarlett. She's adorable." Scarlett gave Belle a genuine smile. The first one ever. In it, Belle saw in her beautiful face what Rhett must see – the light in her eyes, the soft blush on her cheeks, the adorable dimples. No wonder she didn't stand a chance against her. Suddenly, Belle felt the need to create some sort of small- talk; sitting together with her mother in silence would no doubt cause Ella to worry. Ella was so very sweet, and more than anything, Belle wanted this day to be special for her. She had begged her to come along dress shopping, her green eyes large and sincere. _"Please say you'll come, Miss Belle."_ Belle couldn't say no. She wouldn't ruin her day by entering in to fisticuffs with Scarlett.

"Where's your littlest one?"

"Home. Thank God. He'd have torn this place apart." No doubt the fragile gowns and wedding accessories would be no match for the four-year-old. It had taken a certain amount of deception to leave the house without him.

 _"I come with you?" Gerry asked his mother as he filled his mouth with dinosaur shaped cereal. Scarlett was ready for this. The second Gerry heard her grab her keys, he began begging to go too. "Of course you can come, tootsie. Run upstairs and get some clothes on. Your sisters and I are all going to the doctor to get lots of shots. Big ones." She used her hands to indicate their length. Gerry's eye grew wide. "I stay home with daddy." he said as he slumped back into his chair._

 _"You should be ashamed of yourself, misleading a baby.", her husband playfully reprimanded. "I guess you'll just have to punish me when I get home." She said it with a sultry tone, narrowing her eyes seductively and giving him a sexy wink._

 _Bonnie loudly dropped her fork sending sausage grease across the cream tablecloth. "I think I just threw up in my mouth."_

"I hear you're busy planning another wedding too."

Scarlett seemed surprised that Belle was engaging her in conversation. "I'm not exactly _plannin_ g that wedding. I'm just along for the ride. My future daughter in law is not exactly interested into any contributions I make. Do you know the only entrée selections for the reception are going to be vegetarian or vegan?" Belle laughed a deep laugh that made Scarlett laugh too.

"And, instead of gifts, they're asking for donations to a wildlife charity that tries to stop whaling in the Artic! I mean, who does that?"

Belle felt herself start to relax." I would guess that'd be the best part of getting married – all the presents."

"Oh, it is, believe me. The morning after our wedding, I was so excited to open the presents we got that we almost missed our flight to Bora Bora. Rhett had to practically….." She suddenly stopped, remembering who she was talking to. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat as the awkwardness began to set in. Belle noticed Scarlett's change in body language as the tension in the air began growing thick. She was going to be the first one to try and break the ice.

"Scarlett, I don't want this to be a barrier between us."

"Excuse me? What barrier?"

"The thing that happened, between Rhett and me. I don't want it to define us."

Scarlett narrowed her eyes and slightly tilted up her head. "Look, I'm being nice for Ella's sake, but I don't think I could ever look past the fact that you were my husband's mistress." She continued," You know, there's one thing I'd really like to know." Her eyes had changed. Behind her mask of superiority, Belle could now see the pain reflected in them. "During your affair with Rhett, did you encourage him leave me?" There was no use in lying. She knew that Scarlett knew the answer anyway. Belle gazed at the blue carpeting, studying the intricate patterns in the fabric. "Yes. I loved him. I had loved him for years. I would have done anything to have him love me."

Scarlett shook her head and gave a grunt of revulsion.

"I don't mean to upset you. I'm being honest with you, Scarlett; I did everything I could to make a life with me seem to be the most appealing thing to Rhett. I wanted him to leave you. He had never once told me that he loved me, but I thought we could overcome that and that my love would be enough for the both of us. But it was pointless. It's impossible to make someone love you when they are in love with someone else, is there? And that someone else was you. It was only ever you. It didn't matter what he said or did, it always you – never me; or anyone else for that matter."

For the first time, she understood. Was her relationship with Ashley so very different than Rhett's with Belle? Hadn't she tried to convince Ashley to leave Melanie? How many times had she suggested that they just run away? And hadn't she been the one to ask for forgiveness from the woman she wronged? She thought back to the terrible day, so long ago, when she bared her soul to another, begging for absolution.

 _"Don't lie to me, Scarlett. How long were you and Ashley sleeping together?"_

 _Scarlett remembered begging for Melanie's forgiveness. With tears streaming out of her eyes, she told her everything, saying how much she regretted it, how it was different between them now, that she was her best friend, that it was over and would never happen again. The icy stare that Melanie gave her in that moment had been branded on her heart and soul for all eternity. As were her words. She would never forget them, and they would haunt her always._

 _"Stay away from me, Scarlett, and away from my family. You are exactly what they all say you are: nothing but trash."_

In time, Meanie had forgiven her; even though she could never forgive herself. They agreed to put it all behind them, to look forward instead of back. Melanie was ten times the woman Scarlett is, and she couldn't see herself linking arms of solidarity and friendship with Belle Watling; even if that had been what Melly did with her. What she could do, was move forward, to quit looking back. She owed it to Ella – and to Melanie.

Scarlett looked at Belle with tears welling in her eyes. She swallowed her pride and was about to tell her that she wanted to move forward too when they heard Ella's voice. "Are ya'll ready? I'm about to come out."

v

Weary from her day, a bedraggled Scarlett shuffled her way through the side entrance of the estate. She was too tired to make the long walk up from the front path. Both Cat and Bonnie had fallen asleep in the car and were still groggy. The last thing she wanted to hear was their whining about how tired they were all the way up the front drive.

The day was more pleasurable that she had expected. She loved the way the girls looked in their matching blue dresses and was lost for words when Ella stood before her in stunning white satin. Lunch afterwards also went smoothly – almost pleasantly so. All except for Bonnie's ridiculous questions about becoming a burlesque dancer.

 _"Don't you think I'd be great as a burlesque dancer, Miss Belle?"_

 _"Well, you certainly look like one. But you need to well-trained in the art of mystique." She leaned closer to Bonnie and whispered," Your mother would be wonderful at burlesque." She sat back up and took a sip from her wine glass. "Scarlett, have you ever heard of Dita Von Teese?"_

 _Scarlett shook her head no as she spooned perfectly separated portions of veal and asparagus onto a plate for Cat._

 _"You look like her. I've never really noticed it before, but you do."_

 _"Well, she must be gorgeous then."_

She followed the smell of cigar smoke to Rhett's study. She walked behind where he was seated in his favorite chair, the one covered in red velvet that reminded her of something out of the Playboy mansion and draped her arms around his neck and shoulders.

"Gerry! Get up, quick. Mommy's home. Get the naked girls out of here before she sees them!"

He looked up at her with a big smile before grabbing her arm and pulling her into his lap. "I didn't get a call to bail you out of jail, so I'm assuming it all went well today." She leaned against his chest, breathing in the familiar scent of cologne and tobacco. "Very well. You should have seen how beautiful our girls looked today." She didn't mention Belle and he knew better than to bring her up.

"What'd you do to my baby?" she said looking at the way her son was sleeping. Gerry was peacefully sleeping on the sofa in a sitting position with his head resting on a pillow propped up against one of the arms. He was surrounded by a melee of toys, crayons, and fruit snacks. She slid off her husband's lap to adjust her little boy into a more comfortable position and saw that he had a drawing clutched in his tiny hands. "What's this?"

"He made it for you. To make you feel better after all those _shots_ "." It was a picture of a dinosaur under a rainbow. He had drawn the dinosaur with a big smile and purple skin and had written _I love mommy_ with a bright orange crayon. She kissed his little pink cheeks and smoothed the hair out of his face. "Such a little mama's boy." Rhett said as he took a long drag of his cigar.

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

Rhett smiled at her. "Well, it can be, if your mother happens to be Scarlett O' Hara."

She lifted Gerry onto her shoulder and stood up. "Scarlett, leave him. I'll bring him up to bed." She was soothed by the sounds of the soft snores of her son in her ear. She could feel his fingers begin to twirl the strands of her hair. Her nest was getting smaller by the day, two had flown away and one was ready to try out her wings, but this little one was still her baby. "No, finish your cigar. I want to show Mammy the pictures of Ella in her dress anyway. And before you ask, no you cannot see them. I'll see you upstairs. Don't stay up too late." She puckered her lips and blew him a quiet kiss as she left.

After placing Gerry in his bed, she went to check on her daughters. It still felt empty without Ella and Wade here. Less chaotic, less animated. Cat had fallen asleep in her bed, fully clothed and over the comforter. Scarlett removed her shoes and gently guided her under the covers. She placed a feather-soft kiss on her forehead. It was only in sleep that she was given the change to kiss her little girl. Bonnie was snuggled up in her bed with her mouth wide open and snoring; her phone still clutched in her hand. Scarlett placed the phone back on the charger, giving Bonnie a kiss goodnight before leaving the room.

She walked across the hall to mammy's room. She gave it a soft knock. Thanks to Bonnie the new family rule was that everyone had to knock before entering a room. There was no answer, which didn't surprise Scarlett. Mammy was so hard of hearing, she probably couldn't hear it above the blare of the television. Once inside, Scarlett could see mammy's large legs lifted up on the recliner and crossed at the ankles. A large green bowl filled with a half-eaten orange sat on the table beside her. The blanket the kids had given her last Christmas was draped across her lap, only the words _Best Grandma_ were showing amidst the folds of fabric. Dirty dancing was playing on the t.v., an all-time favorite of hers. Patrick Swayze was in the middle of teaching Jennifer Grey how to dance.

"I really wish you could have been there today. You should have seen Ella, mammy. She looked so stunningly beautiful. I took some pictures to show you, look."

"Mammy?"

"Mammy, can you hear me?"

Somehow her body knew before her brain. Her heart began beating faster as her legs began to feel as if they couldn't support her. She reached out a shaky hand to touch her mother's arm and let out a sound that was half cry and half scream.

"Rhett!"


	19. Chapter 19

Scarlett's head lolled to the side as she brought the bottle of brandy to her lips. She had initially started drinking the sweet, brown liquid from a glass tumbler like a proper drunk but once she opened the second bottle, all decorum was forgotten. She still had the tumbler next to her and sporadically filled it with a little brandy for the dog, who was her sole companion as she sat in her large walk-in closet. "You see all this, Forest?", she indicated as she sloshed the brandy bottle in her hand. "This _stuff_? It's shit. None of it matters." She poured a little brandy in the glass for him and Forest lapped it up eagerly, filling the entire glass with his massive pink tongue.

Mammy's death had crushed her. Why Mammy? Why couldn't God take her father who sat in an un yielding state of disconnection with reality instead? She wasn't stupid, she knew that one day Mammy would die, especially since she was over 80. Yet that knowledge did nothing to ease the overwhelming sadness she now felt.

She knew she was already gone when Rhett had come running into Mammy's room and began giving her CPR; pushing down on her billowy flesh and blowing rescue breaths into her lungs. Sweat was pouring down his face and tears dropped from his eyes as he willed Mammy to live. Scarlett silently studied Mammy's features, knowing that this was the last time she would be able to be this near to her. Once they called 9-1-1, she would be taken to the morgue. She took her mother's hand in hers and laid her cheek in the hollow base of her palm. The coldness of it stung. It always did. She was always jolted by how quickly the body grew cold after death. She remembered how her baby's little lips began turning blue almost moments after his heart stopped beating.

Mammy's soft brown hands were changing pigment too. Her memory was flooded with memories of them. She remembered how those hands were wrapped around her when she was told that her mother, Ellen had died. When she was told the truth about her mother's past. When they wiped away her tears of fear and pain during her labors with her babies. These hands helped her dress her tiny baby boy in his Christening gown to be buried in. These hands made countless meals, mended tons of broken hearts, quieted every baby, praised the Lord, and fought for what was right. "Mammy" was all she could say at that moment. It was her prayer of thanksgiving; her only mournful cry.

At Mammy's funeral, she felt numb. She couldn't even cry. She knew the old biddies here would be judging her negatively for her lack of emotion. At least they left her alone.

As usual, everyone in her family looked at her as the strong one, the one who would hold the family together in times like these. They were all relying on her to carry them through, to support them in their grief – never figuring that she needed to grieve herself. Her sisters, her children, her nieces, her husband. Even when she had stood, her face frozen in a placating smile, accepting the sincere condolences from the people who had come to pay their last respects to Mammy, they all surrounded her. Suffocating her. Her sisters never left her side for an instant. Once again, she was the big sister, the oldest, the one who always protected them. Carreen had been holding her hand for almost the entire day and Suellen kept touching her as if she wanted to make sure she was always near. Wherever she went, they went too; gripping hands, standing shoulder to shoulder, sitting knee to knee.

"Where are you going?" Suellen asked her as she began walking away from them. _I'm escaping_ , she wanted to say.

"I'm going to the restroom. I'll be right back."

In the florescent light filling the bathroom, she studied her reflection. For someone who was dying inside, she was physically holding up well. It was her greatest defense and continual life mantra: _never let_ _them see you sweat_.

She was still beautiful. That she knew for sure. She hated the fake humility some women showed when they were told they were beautiful. _"Oh, you're so sweet. I know I look a fright."_ Scarlett never did that. It was pointless. As early back as she could remember, people commented on her stunning looks. When people would say that she was beautiful, she simply smiled as said " _thank you_."

Turning her head from side to side she appraised her flawless make-up and slim body. At thirty-nine, you'd have a tough time finding a single wrinkle on her perfect heart-shaped face. Running her hands along the curves of her waist and hips, she liked what she saw, and she knew that other people did too. She knew that some people saw her as cold, tough, and manipulative. She'd heard it all throughout her life: you're vain, conceited, mean, in love with yourself, etc. Even Rhett had told her that she thought she was the cutest little thing in shoe leather and thought that every man she meets was dying with love for her. She smiled at the thought. They'd just made love for the first time. A mere two weeks after filing for a divorce from Frank. "Not every man. Just the ones who beg me to go to bed with them. ", she had cooed as she fingered through the thick black hairs on his chest.

She wasn't conceited though, she was advantageous. She used what she had to fulfil a greater purpose. Only Mammy knew how she used her beauty as a shield, as a barrier of sorts.

Scarlett had found out early that people were intimidated by beautiful women. They were even more intimidated by women _confident_ of their beauty. She realized that she could use her beauty to keep people at bay, at a peripheral arm's length, protecting herself. No one would get close enough to see how scared and vulnerable she truly was. To see that beneath that veil of exquisite disinterested apathy lay a scared little girl trying to survive and terrified of being hurt.

She gripped the Formica sink basin and tried to collect herself. To adjust her mask of protection. She had to be strong for so many, they were all counting on her. This was no time to fall apart. She repeated the words Dilcy had told her, _"You've been through worse, you'll get through this too."_ Her mind went back to all the times she bore burdens to heavy for even the strongest man. When she was a teenaged single mother with no education, when the IRS was threating to take their house if they didn't pay the back taxes they owed, when she was pregnant after being raped by her sister's fiancé, when she began and ended her affair with Ashley, when her father could no longer remember who she was, when her baby died in her arms, when she lost Melly, when Rhett left.

After a few steading breaths, she washed her hands and walked back out into the throngs of people with her head held high.

"Scarlett" She knew his voice in an instant. The sneering, lecherous way he said her name was still the same. "I don't see how you have the nerve to be here, Jonas."

"I came to pay my last respects to Ruth. We were both quite fond of her.", he said indicating that he and his wife had held high affection for her mother. Scarlett scoffed at this. Mammy hated Jonas Wilkerson and his wife. " _No good, low- down, white trash"_ , she always called them.

"Get out of here, Jonas. No one wants you here. Least of all, me." She fought the sick that was rising in her throat as she noticed how his eyes raked up and down her body, finally lingering on her ample cleavage.

"Damn, you're still sexy as hell."

"Get out. And take your wife with you. You'd best remove her before she falls back into old habits and starts spreading her legs for random, strange men."

"Kind of like the way you spread yours for me?"

The memory assaulted her the way it always did. It never stayed buried for long. It resurfaced every now and then to remind her of how low she had once sunk; how she was no better than Belle Watling.

She had driven to Savannah to ask her grandfather for the money to pay the back taxes only to meet with his cold refusal. " _When you lie with dogs, you get up with their fleas_ " he had said in his pompous French accent. She was shaking with rage when she left. She had used her last penny to fill her car up with gas to get there and now she had no clue as what to do next. If the IRS took the house, where would they go? Thy were out of options. And that wasn't the worst of it. What if CPS came to take her son and placed him in foster care? She wasn't the most affectionate and loving mother, but she would die before someone took Wade from her. Cold chills ran through her body at the thought. She had to think of something fast. She decided to pay an unexpected visit to her father's good friend, Jonas Wilkerson. Once a belligerent drinking buddy of Gerald's, he was a well-known and successful attorney in Atlanta now. Maybe he could help with the money or at least offer her some legal advice… And help her he did.

 _"I can give you the money to pay the taxes and then some, Scarlett." She was overflowing with gratitiude._

 _"Oh, Mr. Wilkerson, you have no idea how thankful I am. I'll pay you back every penny, you won't lose out, I swear."_

 _He moved closer to her. She could feel the heat coming off his body." You don't have to pay me back, Scarlett. I'm sure we could work out some type of arrangement." He ran the back of his fingers along the curve of her neck. "You've grown to be a beautiful woman, my dear."_

 _She jerked away in repulsion at his obvious suggestion. "Are you crazy?! You're my dad's friend. I've known you since I was a little girl!"_

 _He moved away from her, a sneer planted on his face. "Forgive me, Scarlett. I thought you were serious about helping your family. Someone who loved her family, not to mention her baby, would do **anything** for them."_

 _She thought about them. Her sisters, her father, her baby. She would do anything to keep them safe. She'd lie, cheat, steal, or kill for them. She walked toward Jonas' office door and locked it. Turning to face him, she unzipped her dress and let it fall to the floor. "I am serious."_

Despite everyone's advice to her that she should take a sabbatical from work so that she could grieve, she was back at work a week after the funeral. She couldn't stand it any longer. Mammy's absence left a gaping hole in her home. It was as if there was a black cloud that descended on the mansion, siphoning up all the happiness and joy that once was there. As if Mammy had taken it all with her. She clung to her family for almost six days straight, holding them, answering any questions, and wiping their tears. But when Gerry looked at her with his big hazel eyes brimming with tears, asking her once again if Mammy was coming back, she knew she had to go back to work. It was either that or go crazy. She knew she could lose herself in the tedious duties that came with running a company and forget about everything except the numbers spread out on excel documents and spreadsheets.

She was in what she called, her "flow", calculating data and invoices with expert accuracy when her in- office phone buzzed.

"Scarlett, there's someone out here that wants to see you."

She removed her red lacquered fingernails from the keys of the laptop. "Who is it?" she breathed out in frustration. There was a long pause before she continued." You do know that, as part of your job, Hugh, you have to ask these things." She pinched the bridge of her nose together, feeling the familiar sting that came before a migraine headache.

She had lost count of how many times people asked her why she kept Hugh employed as her assistant, incompetent as he was. She always rolled her eyes toward heaven and said she was on a mission from God.

"Michael McDaniel. "He said it as more of a question than a statement.

"Are you _guessing_ that it's Michael McDaniel or _is it_ Michael McDaniel?"

"It's Michael McDaniel."

"Michael "she repeated out loud to herself. She hadn't seen or heard from him in over twenty years and she barely remembered even that brief meeting. " _This is Michael, my sister Harriet's son_." Mammy had said to the three little girls hiding behind her skirt as they were introduced. Mammy and her sister never got along and were rarely in contact with other. It was the result of some falling out between the two of them years ago. Mammy had never disclosed the particulars of the rift. She would only comment that her family didn't agree with some of her choices.

"Send him in ".

She was a mess today, ill prepared for meeting Michael again. She wished she had a better handle on this situation, or at least appear to have one. She had tried to locate Michael and his mother to notify them of Mammy's death. She could never reach them, and she was forced to leave a voicemail, telling them that Mammy had died and the date, time, and locate of the service being held for her. She had done all she could, but she still felt guilty. They were only blood-related family Mammy had left. Perhaps she should have tried harder.

She rose from her chair to meet Michael as he came into her office. She was struck at how much he had changed. Of course, they had all changed since childhood, but she felt her breath hitch as the sight of him. He was tall with a broad, muscular build that could be detected beneath his caramel colored jacket. His hair was clipped close to his scalp and showed just hints of grey. She recognized his eyes, still a steely grey and framed with long, curling eyelashes. She wasn't sure what type of greeting was appropriate in this situation. They weren't related, and they were hardly friends. Should they hug or shake hands?

"Michael. It's good to see you again. Please have a seat." She shook his hand and gestured to a chair near her desk. Not wanting to appear ostentatious and superior, she lowered herself in the chair next to him and not in her large, leather desk chair.

"I'm sorry I didn't make it to Aunt Ruth's funeral. I was out of the country on business." She gave him a slight smile. She didn't want to talk about Mammy. She still couldn't think about her without crying.

"I would, however, like to be present at the reading of her will." Scarlett raised an eyebrow in confusion. "There's not going to be a reading of her will. I have it here." She lifted her hand, gesturing to its location in her office. "She left everything to my sisters and me. To be split evenly among us."

"Everything? All her assets, life insurance pay-outs, her holdings? It all goes to you?" He said it almost as if he already knew this; as if someone had informed him of the details of the documents beforehand.

"To my sisters and me, yes."

He gave a snide laugh. "How fitting. She gives her life taking care of the _Massr's chilen,_ turns her back on her real family and leaves all her money when she dies to the white man's rich children."

"It wasn't like that, Michael, and you know it. And as far as turning her back on what you call her **_family,_** I don't recall any of you reaching out to her throughout the years either. Look, I'm not in the mood to argue with you. If you think you can come in here and guilt me into giving you her money, you're wasting your time." She walked to her office door and opened it, indicating to him that their meeting was over. As he passed in front of her, he stopped and turned to face her. His eyes were sharp as he looked at her. "Oh, Scarlett, you're so naïve. I don't just want her money, I want everything." He gripped her chin between his thumb and fore finger and turned her head to face him." I suggest you hire an attorney, Scarlett. You're in for a fight."

The loud ring of her cell phone startled her. She ignored it as she watched Michael walk toward the elevator. It continued ringing until the voice mail picked up and then began ringing again. Ignoring the repeating drone, she thought about what Michael had said. He had no case, she was sure of it. Legally, she, Careen, and Suellen were her heirs.

"Hugh, get my Uncle Henry on the phone. Call all of his numbers until he picks up."

Her cell phone was silent for a few seconds before ringing again. "What ?!", she screamed as she answered it.

"Scarlett." Henry. Thank the Lord. Her uncle began every conversation the same way; saying her name as a terse statement. He would always pronounce it, _Scar-lit_ , emphasizing the last syllable.

"I've just received some interesting information from a Mr. Michael McDaniel saying that he plans to contest Ruth's will. He's claiming that you unlawfully coerced her into making you and your sisters the beneficiaries of her estate."

So this was what he meant when he told her she was in for a fight. "That's insane, Uncle Henry. You know Mammy made all her own decisions. You handled the will! Do you think we **_made_** her name us? He has no case, right?" She could hear the rattled breathing of her uncle over the phone. "He has the burden of proof, of course," he paused for a moment. "But from what he's suggesting, this could get ugly, Scarlett. Very, very ugly."

She left work early without as much as telling anyone she was leaving and drove straight home. She had to talk to Rhett. Together, they could decide what to do next.

Waiting for her on the silver tray in the grand foyer was the daily mail. Bills, letters, promotions, invitations, and random junk. She flipped through the envelopes and flyers as she walked up the stairs to her bedroom, separating the ones to keep and the ones to throw away when she saw it. A large cream-colored envelope. Par Avion from France. She had expected some sort of contact now that Mammy was dead. The last letter had come right after Gerry was born. She knew what it would say – the same thing they all said. She moved the letter to the pile to throw away, placing it behind the others. She didn't even want to look at his name. It was spelled out in those long sloping letters she had come to recognize. _Phillipe Robillard_.

Rhett wasn't home. No one was. At least no one who had the courage to face her. Her staff knew better than to address their mistress when she in one of her "states". Even kind- hearted Mrs. Fitz gave her a wide berth. Walking into her massive closet, she removed the hidden bottle of brandy from behind her designer purses. Birkin, Fendi, Gucci, Prada, Chanel, _Hennessy_. If ever she needed a drink, it was now.

v

"I found her!" Suellen yelled as she opened he sister's closet door.

"Ugh" Scarlett groaned. "Go away."

"Sissy!" Carreen bounded in behind Suellen. "We've been trying to reach you for hours! "Scarlett offered up no explanation as she sat before them in her overly drunken state and pulled at the dark blue Zac Posen evening gown hanging above her and let it fall onto her head. "Pretend I'm not here."

Suellen picked up the empty brandy bottle that lay on the floor and noticed the other one in Scarlett's hand. "Are you drunk?"

Scarlett threw the dress to the side. She gulped down the last bit of brandy in the second bottle before wiping away the excess liquid that had seeped from her lips with the back of her hand." I'm very drunk and I intend getting still drunker." As she said it, she could feel the emotion rising in her. She tried to swallow it down, to bury it as she always had, but the alcohol had dulled her senses. She didn't even try to hide her face from her sisters as she began to sob.

"Sissy, don't cry. Please don't." Careen wrapped her thin arms around her sister's neck and peppered her face with kisses.

Suellen moved to sit next to her sister. Her nose crinkled at the foul smell of alcohol that permeated off her. "Judging from your reaction, I take it that you heard about Michael too."

Scarlett brought the bottle to her lips and frowned once she realized that it too was empty. "I'm just so tired of this shit, Sue."

"Tired of what? Living like a queen?"

Careen gave her sister a firm look as she rubbed Scarlett's arm. "Way to be a bitch, Sue! She's obviously upset."

"Just go, Suellen.", Scarlett cried. "I can't talk to you about anything. You run to me when you need something, but the minute I need something from you, you can't be bothered. Has it ever occurred to you that I'm tired of being the one who takes care of everything? I'm tired of being the one who has to carry everything on my shoulders, making sure everyone is alright! It's not fair! My entire life has been one catastrophe after another; another trial I've had to endure; another gust of wind that tries to blow me down. Well, I can't do this anymore. I'm almost forty years old. I'm at my limit. I need some sort of peace. One more gust of wind and it'll take me with it. I'll be gone."

Suellen was silent. What she said was true. It **had** always been Scarlett they'd turn to when they were afraid. She was the one to quiet their fears, to guide them through the tough times of life. True, she and Scarlett were known to have Jerry Springer type fights with each other; just a few months ago Scarlett had even broken her nose, but she knew that despite everything, her big sister would be there for her in an instant. Even when they were little, Scarlett always put the needs of her sisters above her own. She knew that somehow, Scarlett had given a piece of herself to keep a roof over their heads and food on their table. She didn't know exactly what she gave or what it cost her personally, but she knew it was something her sister could never get back. She deserved someone to be there for her too.

Suellen pulled her sister into an embrace. "You're not in this alone, Scarlett. You're stuck with us like a bad case of herpes. We're not going anywhere. We're going to fight this together."

v

Scarlett awoke the next morning to a headache so severe that it felt as if her head were trapped in a vice. The bright sun that seeped through the muslin curtains pierced her eyes like red-orange daggers. She wanted to die. She hadn't had a hangover this badly since the Butler enterprises' Christmas party two years ago when she and her sister's in law guzzled down whiskey- sours and sang karaoke with the girls from the secretarial pool.

She vaguely remembered crawling to the bathroom during the night to heave her insides out over the toilet and even though the memory of doing so was fuzzy, she could smell the distinct sour odor of vomit coming from her clothes and hair reaffirming the validity of it.

She stumbled to her bathroom to find Careen soaking in her large, jacuzzi bathtub with a charcoal mask on her face. "Good morning, sunshine!", Careen said brightly. "Did you sleep well?"

Scarlett lifted the hairdryer from her nearby vanity." I'm going to throw this hairdryer in there with you. I need a shower. I smell like Bourbon street."

Scarlett bathed quickly. She brushed her teeth, pulled her hair into a ponytail, and dressed in the most comfortable clothes she could find. Her eyes were so dry and bloodshot that she couldn't even attempt to put her contact lens in. She glanced in the mirror and noticed that she looked all of twelve years old.

Her empty stomach assaulted her as she made her way down the stairs into the main living area. She ate almost nothing yesterday and threw up whatever little food remined in her stomach. "Look at my little pet. Come here, you adorable little thing and let me hold you." Rhett held out his arms to her and she walked into them gratefully. She nestled comfortably into his strong arms.

"I came home last night to find you in bed with two other women." He said as he stroked her back. "I admit that it's been a fantasy of mine to find like you like that, but not when the other women are your sisters." She gave a slight laugh. "I talked to Henry about Michael and Mammy's will. I told him we'd meet with him later today to go over our options. He's right, Scarlett. This could get ugly." She sighed and lifted her head to kiss him softly on the lips.

Walking into the dining room, she ruffled Gerry's curls before planting a kiss on his sticky cheek. "Morning' mommy", he said with a mouthful of strawberries and pancake.

"Good morning, Sue. Thanks for staying the night with me." Suellen was standing next to the buffet sideboard spooning scrambled eggs onto her plate. Scarlett helped her son down from his chair before pouring herself a large cup of coffee. "Two hands, mister." She smiled at his serious face as he brought his empty plate to the kitchen. She gently stirred the cream in her coffee, making sure not to make loud clanging sounds as the metal of the spoon collided with the porcelain mug.

"When were you going to tell us?", Suellen asked in an even tone. Scarlett then noticed the letter to her from Phillipe had been opened and was lying there on the table.

"Opening mail not addressed to you is a felony, Sue. Maybe I should press charges? You know to get you back for pressing assault charges on me this summer." She hoped that goading Sue into a fight would distract her from what she was about to ask.

"You deserved those charges. You broke my nose, you crazy bitch and don't avoid my question. How long have you known?"

"Known what?" Scarlett gently blew on the steam rising from her cup. She knew this day would come. She'd always said she'd think about it tomorrow. Well here it was – tomorrow. It came.

"That Phillipe is your biological father."


	20. Chapter 20

Bonnie ran the soft bristles of the brush down the freckled body of her horse. She loved how she would lift his head as she brushed in the direction of the hair growth. This was her happy place, here with her horses, surrounded by the musky, earthly smells of the stable. She winced as she adjusted the white saddle pad on her back. She hated the rigidity of the rules in dressage and wished she could use the blue one that was embroidered with her initials instead. It wasn't as if this was the state or national competition. She liked to think that her horse felt the same way about her. But in truth, she knew she didn't care as long as she was rubbed down before and after the show and fed peppermints and sugar cubes.

"Hey."

She turned her head, startled at the sound of the voice.

"Beau?" she said in bewilderment. "What are you doing here?"

Beau raised his hand and ran it down the long flank of the horse. "Hello to you too. I came to see the competition."

Bonnie felt her heart begin to beat faster. Beau had never shown any interest in her riding. In fact, he teased her endlessly about the sport and said it was a joke that equestrian was now included in the summer Olympics. "If they wanted to include a real sport into the Olympics, they should add football". Bonnie had screamed at him and called him a Neanderthal.

"It's just regionals though. My parents aren't even here."

Bonnie could see that her mother felt badly about not being there today. They never missed one of her competitions.

"Are you sure you don't mind that we miss it? We could reschedule our meeting with Uncle Henry. Or maybe daddy could go, and I could go to the meeting alone?

Bonnie knew that her mother didn't want to meet with Uncle Henry alone. This whole thing with Mammy's nephew was turning out to be a nightmare. Her mother was consumed by the stress of it. She could hear her on the phone with her aunts late at night asking if they should just give Michael what he wanted and questioning if they were doing the right thing. Never before had Bonnie seen her mother so indecisive. She was barely sleeping and was skipping most meals. She was losing weight she couldn't afford to lose. The result of which, left her pale and hollowed cheeked. A familiar look that scared the hell out of her family. To make matters worse, her nightmares had returned. Once again, her mother's shrieks and cries would pull Bonnie out of a deep slumber. She could hear as her father would soothe her back to sleep; promising to keep her safe.

Bonnie knew that between the two of them, her mother was the one that needed to be supported today.

"Don't worry mom. It's really no big deal. You don't even watch me take the jumps anyway."

It was true. Scarlett could sit through the dressage part just fine, it was the jumping portion that scared her to death. She would hide her face in her hands every time; refusing to look as her daughter would leap over obstacles that only got wider and taller. "Is it over?", she'd ask her husband, her voice muffled, before she would look again.

"I know. Aunt Scarlett said that she had to meet with uncle Henry today and I didn't want you to do this without anyone here to cheer you on, so to say." Beau cast his eyes downward as he said it. Revealing too much about his feelings to Bonnie could be dangerous. Since the night her brought her home from the club, she had never left his thoughts. He thought about her in the mornings when he woke up. He couldn't concentrate all day at work because of her. He constantly wondered what she was doing, what she was thinking, who she was with, if she were safe. He fell asleep thinking about her causing her to infiltrate his dreams. Without ever expecting it, this bad tempered, spoiled, gorgeous girl had disrupted his entire life. He was powerless to stop her and he wasn't sure he wanted to.

"Is your girlfriend here too?" She knew the question made her sound young and immature but asked it anyway.

"Who, Anne? No. We're just friends." He stuck his hands in the front pockets of his jeans.

Bonnie thought that is was incredibly sexy thing to do.

She smirked and raised her eyebrow at him. "That didn't look to me like a friendly kiss you gave her the other night, Beau. Or maybe that's the way you tell all your friends goodbye? Certainly, you mustn't consider me to be much of a friend, then. We parted ways the other night without so much as a peck on the cheek."

"I distinctly recall you calling me a kidnapping, redneck fuck-tard and that you hated me."

She made a sound like a disappointed sigh and turned to tighten the straps on her saddle.

"Bonnie." He touched her arm. She could feel the heat rising to her cheeks. "Is this your way of telling me that you want me to kiss you?"

Beau could visibly see her chest begin to rise and fall as her breathing changed. She turned towards him. The flush on her cheeks was very noticeable against the lily-whiteness of her complexion. Her full red lips parted as she lowered her blue eyes to his mouth. "If I were, would you be brave enough to do it?", she softly whispered.

Beau ran the back of his fingers across her cheek, then gently gripped her chin while he ran his thumb along her bottom lip. He was going to kiss her. He had to. He didn't care what this meant. All he knew was, that in this moment, all he wanted was to feel her soft lips against his." Bonnie", was all he said before lowering his mouth to meet hers.

She melted in his arms; completely folding herself into his embrace. The kiss, so seemingly innocent, was nothing like she had ever experienced before. She had been kissed by a boy ten times in her sixteen years. Nothing compared to this. This was something totally different. She thrilled in the fact that Beau wasn't some foolish boy, he was a man. She moved her hand behind Beau's neck and pressed him even closer to her. His hand was firm on her back too; pulling her even tighter into his embrace. A delicious chill went through her body. She could feel him.

"ALL RIDERS TO THE SOUTH GATE!" The announcer's voice blared into the stalls. Bonnie pulled away from him and gripped the wall of the stable for support. Her lips were red and swollen. Her blue eyes were very bright.

"I guess that means it's time for me head out to the stands. I want to get a good seat."

Bonnie pulled herself up onto her horse and strapped her helmet into place. Her breathing had still yet to return to normal. "It really doesn't matter where you sit, Beau. You'll be able to see me win this thing from any seat."

Scarlett's was in a fog. There was so much on her mind that she couldn't focus on any one thing. In the past week she had argued with Michael over Mammy's money three times, explained to Sue about Phillipe, she didn't dare tell Careen yet, she worked on the new lumber contract with the state, exchanged passive aggressive emails with Aimee's mother about the upcoming bridal shower, visited wedding venues with Ella, tried explaining algebraic formulas with Bonnie, tried convincing Cat that whirring sound of her ceiling fan was not going to kill her, and fought with Rhett almost daily. She was mentally and physically exhausted.

She was almost grateful that she couldn't truly be in the moment at Gerry's open house. He was starting Kindergarten in a few days and this was a moment she had been dreading for months. She'd expected to be an emotional mess when she was faced with the physical reality that her baby was growing up, she cried at the thought of it. She had even cried in her car the entire way home after picking up his little backpack from the embroiders. Cat had even admonished her after listening to her sobs for ten minutes. "Mom, you really are being ridiculous. Get a grip on yourself."

But she didn't feel that now. She couldn't. feel much of anything. She was sad at the thought of Gerry growing up of course, but as her mind continued to pull her in other places, it left her unable to dwell on this milestone in Gerry's life.

She stood across from the PTA representative who was energetically explaining this year's agenda and fundraising gala. She nodded her head and smiled, not hearing a word the woman said. Scarlett would just write a check and that would be it. Her involvement in the PTA would end there. Still, she stood there and appeared to listen. "That sounds marvelous. Please let me know how I can help.", she said with a smile as she moved from the table and into the line for uniforms.

"Hey girl! "Maybelle Picard said as she sat across from her at the uniform table. Scarlett smiled at her. Maybelle and she had not always been on friendly terms. She was more of Melly's friend and they typically just avoided each other. Especially after Maybelle's husband drunkenly told all the attendees of a party one summer night, his wife included, that Scarlett had the most beautiful tits he had ever seen.

But after Melly died, she actually began to like Maybelle. She reminded her a lot of Melly and it made the pain of losing her more bearable. She was always volunteering for things, helping out at church pot-lucks, read to the blind, served food at the homeless shelter. All things Melly did. She was gentle like her. So, it was no surprise to see her helping at the school's open house; even though her last child had long since graduated.

"How many extras do you need?"

"Three. And a pair of sweatpants too. Size 6."

Maybelle made an exaggerated frown. "Gerry is starting this year, right?"

At this, Scarlett felt as though she might cry. "Yes. Unfortunately."

Maybelle reached across the table and grabbed her hand and squeezed. "I know it's hard.", she said as she handed Scarlett a bundle of clothes.

She placed the extra uniforms on top of all the papers, folders, water bottles, and handbooks she had collected. Rhett had taken Gerry to run off some energy on the playground while she filled out all the forms and gathered all the information for school. Both were antsy to get away from the huge mass of people. Rhett had sighed as soon as they entered the building.

Every conversation between them was turning into an argument. If was if they were purposely picking fights with one another.

"When I was a kid, you just went to school on the first day and that was it. None of all this nonsense."

"Well, it's not the 1950's anymore and you just have to shut up and deal with it."

Rhett rolled his eyes at her sharp comment. "You've been a real B-I-T-C-H lately, you know that." Soon Gerry would learn to spell, and they wouldn't be able to curse like this anymore.

"You can go F-U-C-K yourself, Rhett."

They would have to deposit these items off somewhere before they met Gerry's teacher. She could barely see over the massive mound of school supplies and information in her arms. She was looking down, trying to adjust the school approved nap mat that was slipping from her grasp when she slammed into another person.

"I am so sorry!", she said as she let her items fall to the floor. She had collided with a man carrying a cup of hot coffee. The strong smell of the coffee beans added an unpleasant addition to the already perfume mixed with sweat odor that filled the air in the assembly hall. The coffee must have been very hot as the man had pulled the soaked cotton of his shirt away from his body with a look of pain on his face. Instinctively she grabbed one of Gerry's gym shirts and began sopping up the hot liquid from the man's shirt. "This is my fault. I wasn't looking where I was going. I'm so sorry."

"Please. I'm fine", he said as he held up his hand in a request for her to stop pawing at him.

He said it in a very clipped British accent that caught her off guard. She raised her eyes to look at him and was left breathless. He was gorgeous. His hair was rust colored with streaks of blond throughout and framed his face in soft waves. She noticed his blue eyes, chiseled jawline, full lips, and the way his wet shirt clung to him revealing his toned upper body.

Instinctively, her body reacted. She could feel herself blushing. She looked at him through her thick black lashes, giving him a slight smile as she fluttered them a bit. It was a harmless unconscious reaction, she told herself. Neither of them spoke as the palatable tension between them began to grow. He looked back at her with a satisfied smile of his own. Scarlett demurely cast her eyes downward before raising them again. This was a game she knew how to play.

He held her gaze for an agonizingly long time before speaking. "Forgive my boldness, but you have the most beautiful green eyes I've ever seen."

She smiled at him; showing her dimples. She was full-on flirting with this man. "I'm Scarlett.", she offered. She could almost hear Mammy's voice chiding her for leaving out her last name and reminding her that she was a married woman.

"Scarlett, tu es exquis.", (Scarlett, you are exquisite.) he replied.

She pulled the corner of her bottom lip between her teeth. So, he spoke French.

"Je vous remercie. Fais attention ou tu vas me tourner la tête" (Thank you. Be careful or you'll turn my head.), she replied without a hint of an American accent. "Avez-vous un nom, monsieur?" (Do you have a name, sir?)

"Shameless. You should be ashamed of yourself, Scarlett O' Hara", she said to herself.

He smiled showing a row of perfect white teeth. "Richard. Richard Fenton."

Gerry's classroom looked more like a playroom than a classroom. Little yellow chairs were snuggly placed under round tables with containers of crayons, water paints, and scissors on top. There was a reading corner with large fluffy pillows and about every Pete the cat story imaginable. A mobile of the solar system hung above a science station that contained a terrarium with a tarantella named Wynonna and five little microscopes. In the corner there was a "creativity area" with dress up clothes hanging on bright red pegs and a play kitchen stocked with loads of Melissa and Doug play food. Gerry was beyond excited and pulled at his mother's hand to be allowed to go explore.

She insisted that they first meet his teacher; a pretty blonde named who introduced herself as Miss Stacy. She was young with a cheery smile and disposition to match. Everything you'd expect a kindergarten teacher to be. Gerry introduced himself as Gerald Butler, as he had been taught to do, but immediately indicated that he preferred to be called Gerry.

His teacher lowered herself to his level and gave him a purple sucker and a sticker that said "superstar". He smiled at her with his gap-toothed grin. She had won him over just like that. Scarlett felt a rush of jealousy at the obvious admiration her son felt for another grow up woman. She felt betrayed. She wanted to gather Gerry in her arms and tell his teacher that SHE, his mother, the one who went through fourteen hours of agonizing labor with him, the one who breastfed him until her breasts looked like something out of National Geographic, was the only adult woman allowed in his life.

Gerry recognized his name on the birthday chart that hung on the wall and pointed it out to his teacher. "That's right!", Ms. Stacy told him. She made a point of addressing Gerry and not his parents. "You have a birthday coming up!"

"In ten days.", Scarlett added. She knew if she pushed the issue, she could actually have Gerry start kindergarten the next school year. She would do it in a heartbeat if Rhett would agree to it.

"Daddy, can we go see the spider, now?". Gerry had begun tugging on his father since his mother was obviously not moving. It tugged at her heart at the way he said spider with his little lisp. All words beginning with an S always had a th sound. Rhett chuckled as he let himself be led to the hairy, eight-legged class pet.

Scarlett stood behind, determined to talk with his teacher, but she had already moved on and was talking to the next student that came into the room.

"Introduce yourself." It was the same clipped British accent she heard earlier.

Scarlett turned to see the same man, this time with a fresh shirt and a little boy about the same age as Gerry who was nervously telling the teacher his name.

"Luke", he said shyly in the same posh accent. Scarlett smiled from ear to ear at the adorable way he said his name in his little British voice.

"It's nice to meet you, Luke. I'm Ms. Stacy, your teacher." She glanced up at Luke's father and continued her conversation with her student using the same devious tactic she used on Gerry. She was a modern day pied piper. Stealing away little children from their parents' loving grasp with suckers and stickers. Bitch.

"Would you like me to show some of the interesting things we have in the class?". Luke gently placed his hand in hers and followed silently behind her as she explained to different activities and exciting things they would be learning this year.

Watching her, Scarlett's mind was flooded with memories of Melanie. She loved meeting her students for the first time. She was an excellent teacher. "You were born to be a teacher ", Scarlett would say to Melanie as she handed her cardboard cutouts of butterflies to staple on her classroom's bulletin board.

"What were you born for, then?", she'd ask back.

"To make Frank Kennedy's life a living hell. And I'm very good at it."

This time of year was her favorite. Just the idea of setting up her classroom for a new crop of students filled her with such enthusiasm that Scarlett couldn't help but smile. Melanie would even try to get Scarlett to go shopping for supplies to decorate her classroom. She had only succeeded once. Reluctantly, Scarlett agreed to go shopping for craft supplies at Michaels. They weren't in the store fifteen minutes before Scarlett deeply regretted her decision.

"What do you think about a western theme this year? You know, a pirate theme would be fun too. Which do you prefer, Scarlett?"

Scarlett had made an exaggerated groaning sound. Beau was the only child that was acting like a normal human being that day, whereas Scarlett's children were running through the aisles like screaming banshees. She could hear items falling from the shelves in the next aisle over. Wade was yelling something at Ella causing her to cry and scream at her brother that he was a "stupid meanie" between her ear-piercing sobs. Scarlett had yelled over threats to them as Bonnie was violently thrusting her little body against the straps of her stroller, throwing a massive temper tantrum – for what reason, she hadn't a clue.

"That's it! I'm coming over there to beat both your assess! "

Caroline Mead, who stood at the knitting display a few feet away, clutched her basket filled with yarn and gave Scarlett a look of sheer disgust. And through it all, there stood Melly, oblivious; totally blinded by the complete excitement of a new school year.

"Melanie, I really don't give a shit. Pick anything. I'm about to attempt suicide by slashing my wrists with my keys if I have to stay in here another second. Can we just go?"

"Bonjour encore, Mademoiselle." (Hello again, miss.) Scarlett was pulled from her memory by the silken voice.

"On se revoit, Monsieur." (We meet again, sir)

He was even more gorgeous in the natural light filtering in through the classroom windows.

"You speak French beautifully. Do you visit there often?"

"No. My mother was French and taught me the language." She left out what she wanted to add: Both of my parents are French actually. My biological father, the Frenchman, seduced and then abandoned my mother when he found out she was pregnant with me. Thankfully, she married a wonderful Irishman that was a better father to me than that prick could ever be. It wasn't until my mother died that he even had the nerve to meet me and acknowledge the facts that I was his biological daughter. Now, he wants to be part of my life and meet his grandchildren; but I wouldn't piss on the old fucker if he were on fire.

"Your son?", she asked, slightly nodding in the direction of the little boy fingering through the books at the reading corner. He smiled as he said yes. "You see that one with the black hair running around as if he's on meth? He's mine."

She called Gerry over as Luke returned to his father. Ms. Stacy had gone to meet the other students entering the classroom.

"Gerry, this is Luke. He's going to be in your class this year." Both boys stood silently appraising each other as Rhett walked up to them. "Who's this, Gerry? A new friend?"

"His name's Luke, daddy."

Rhett smiled down at the little boy. He then looked at the man that he assumed to be the boy's father. Something about him was off. He didn't like the way he was looking at his wife or how close he stood to her. She might have been a huge bitch to him lately. But he'd be damned before she was anyone else's huge bitch.

"I see that you made a new friend too, my pet." He pulled Scarlett toward him and snuck his arm around her waist. A gesture that unmistakably said, "she's mine".

"This is Richard, Luke's father. Richard, this is my husband, Rhett". Rhett shook the man's hand as forcefully as he could. "Rhett Butler. Nice to meet you."

"Thanks for letting me spend the night, Ella. I really miss you at home."

Bonnie tucked her legs underneath her as she reclined on her sister's blue couch. Ella and Taz's condo was cozy and inviting. It was a welcome change from the tense atmosphere that filled the Butler mansion these days. Ella and Taz insisted on living without any financial help from their parents and had picked most of their pieces of furniture out from estate sales and the let it go app. None of it really matched and it was very inexpensive, but somehow it fit together nicely. Maybe it wasn't the condo itself that made her feel happy and relaxed. Maybe it was just being with Ella. They had never been separated for extended periods of time and she missed her sister's presence immensely.

"I'm glad you're here. I never expected to miss your little prissy ass so much."

Bonnie gave her sister the middle finger. She apprised the art pieces Ella had chosen to display. Ella had a good eye for decorating. This was something she certainly did not inherit from their mother. "I take it that it was Taz's idea to use a football jersey as art?", she said nodding to the large number 9 New Orleans Saints Jersey hanging on the wall.

"Don't get me started. I told him it looked stupid up there and he followed me around the condo yelling Who Dat for 30 minutes. I have a bad feeling about when the Saints play the Falcons this year."

Bonnie thoughts went again to Beau. He loved football. Suddenly she imagined how it would be to be married to Beau. They would invite Ella and Taz over to watch the games. Both husbands would be embroiled in a friendly rivalry over their home teams. Married to Beau. His wife. Her lips still tingled from his kiss. She couldn't stop thinking about it. About how right it felt. About how much she enjoyed it. About how she ached for more. She was so thrilled and shaken by these unexpected feelings that she had trouble concentrating as she took the jumps on the course today. She almost lost her first place standing to Willow Bennet – a rider to whom Bonnie was far superior. She was feeling things that she had never felt before and it both excited and scared her. She was filled with such an excited anticipation that at times she felt as though her heart would burst. She was both terrified and thrilled to see him again. Would he kiss her again? Would he go even further? Would she let him? She knew she would. She would let him go as far as he wanted.

"Can I ask you a question, Ella?".

Ella gave her a look that told her that she could ask anything.

"How did you know that Taz was the right one?"

Ella smiled at the innocent question. She was surprised that Bonnie, with her extreme apathy for romance and love, would ask her this. "I didn't at first. I thought he was really good-looking, but I never considered anything long term with him. Then I started seeing him everywhere and we became friends. And then something happened. I began really looking forward to his visits. I wanted to see him all the time. I wanted him to be by my side. To talk, laugh, do anything really. After a while I realized that there was no one else in the entire world that I wanted to be with. I only wanted Taz to be with me and share my life. Forever. I know it sounds corny, but there it is."

A slight blush crept up onto her cheeks when she thought about how much she loved Taz. How much they loved each other. Bonnie wouldn't understand it though. As much as she loved her little sister, Ella would the first one to tell you that she was extremely self-centered and spoiled. She wasn't the only one to think this way. Even their mother would shake her head in defeat at Bonnie's spoiled ways. "Heaven help the poor man that falls in love with her.", she'd say.

"I have another question. But before I ask you, you have to promise not to get how you get." Bonnie said as she made gestures with her hands to indicate the manner in which she interpreted Ella's frustrated demeanor.

"How I get? What is that supposed to mean?"

She rolled her eyes at her sister. She knew exactly what she meant. "You know how you get, Ella. You get all puffed up and start telling me." She took on a mocking tone of her sister's voice." Your being ridiculous Bonnie. You to need to grow up and stop being a spoiled brat – blah, blah, blah"

"I do not sound like that."

"You do"

"Well you know who you sound like, don't you?" It was an unspoken understanding about who she meant. And it angered Bonnie to hear it. "Just ask me your question and I promise not to belittle you and your spoiled ways."

Bonnie took a deep breath. "Did it hurt the first time?"

"First time for what?"

"The first time you had sex, Ella."

Ella smiled. "I know. I just liked seeing you be uncomfortable."

"You are a suck-ass big sister, you know that?"

"Oh, shut up, you know I love you. Well, it wasn't exactly pleasant, if that's what you're asking. But it was only that once that it hurt. After that it … well, let's just say that it certainly didn't hurt anymore." She didn't tell her sister just how much it no longer hurt. So much so that she and Taz made love every chance they could. Even the sofa Bonnie was sitting on had been "christened" by their love on more than one occasion.

"Okay, but when does it get like…" She just had to blurt it out. As embarrassing as it was, Ella was the only one she could ask. She had to know. "like how it is with mom and dad."

Ella almost chocked on her sweet tea. She let out a loud laugh. It was true that her mother and stepfather liked to think that their almost nightly "ritual" was a secret kept hidden behind their bedroom doors. But the truth of it was that her mother's voice carries, and everyone can hear her when she comes. Everyone. Every. Single. Time."Not that long. But you'd have to ask mom about any particulars."

"No thank you. I've already walked in on them once. That's enough exposure to last me a lifetime."

"You walked in on them?! Did they not lock the door?"

"No, they locked it, but I picked the lock and went in and got an eyeful."

Ella began laughing so much that tears were falling from her eyes. "You dumbass! What would you do that ?!"

"Because they refused to buy me a car. And I knew it was the tyrant's idea and not daddy's, so I wanted to find out why he agreed to follow her lead. I honestly didn't care what they were doing. I was way too pissed. Seriously, I'm sixteen without a car! Anyway, I didn't see anything too traumatizing. Only mom's boobs, and we've all seen those."

They both laughed at that. They began sharing stories about their mother's lack of decorum while she was breastfeeding Gerry. They'd be mortified when she began nursing him- without a cover- in front of anyone- anywhere. Wade would cover his eyes and ask her to please put "those things" away. Those things. He was even too embarrassed to use the words breasts and mother in the same sentence.

"Poor Wade" Ella said through her tears.

Just then her phone buzzed to life. The brightness of the screen illuminated the name of the caller. "Speak of the devil!" she said as she faced the caller's name to her sister. She swiped across to answer the call.

"Wade! Were your ears ringing? Bonnie and I were just talking about you.

You're watching what?

Tisk, tisk, Wade. I'm going to tell mom you're watching CNN. She's gonna be so pissed.

Calm down I was just joking.

What? Are you sure? Right now?!"

Ella grabbed the remote to the television and furiously began pushing through the channels as she sought the news channel. She stood, rooted to the floor with her cell phone still attached to her ear. It was a press conference. Reporters were yelling questions to the two women behind the podium. A blonde and a brunette. They both looked brow-beaten and scared. They held hands as the brunette began to speak.

"We are here because we feel that we can no longer be silent. The Me-too movement gave us the strength to come forward with our stories, and for that, we are grateful. We feel that by speaking about what happened to us, we may be able to protect other young women from enduring the same fate."

She took a deep breath before continuing.

"Years ago, while we were both very young and impressionable, Rhett Butler of Butler Enterprises, raped us."


	21. Chapter 21

**Felicitations, my darling readers! I am so thrilled by the intelligent dialogue between my commentators. I enjoy them immensely ! Before I begin this chapter, let me first explain my thoughts on my adaptations of the characters (which sadly do not belong to me …. If only, though…) in this story. The Rhett Butler portrayed in the film by Clark Gable was a far cry from the megalomaniac that is featured in the book. In the novel, he toys with Scarlett. He confuses her and when she acts out in frustration, he laughs at her. Several times in the book, he threatens her with physical violence and insults her in the deepest ways possible by flaunting his mistress in her face. And for all the times he calls her a child, saying she was crying for the moon, the moment she tells him that she loves him, he leaves her. NoT so dashing and romantic if you ask me.**

 **My modern adaptation of the story takes us father down the road; several years after their last literary conversation. Scarlett and Rhett are older and have been together over two decades. They have three more kids together and face the daily struggles that come from raising a blended family. As she was for MM, Scarlett is the heroine in this story. For a character written almost one hundred years ago, Scarlett O' Hara is as much as a female icon as she was back then, and this is her story. Please read on and leave copious comments for me! I love them!**

 **So, without future adieu …...**

Her husband was many things, but a rapist he was not. This much she knew.

She watched these women, looked at their pained faces, screwed up with emotion, and felt nothing. Not a flicker of anger. Not a surge of trepidation. Not a single empathic reaction. She felt nothing. "Scarlett. Scarlett, can you hear me?" Rhett was next to her. She could hear him, smell him even. But even his voice could not pull her from the abyss her mind had retreated to.

"I never raped those women. Please tell me you believe me. Honey look at me. You don't think I did that, do you? Scarlett, please."

Her voice was shallow when she spoke, even-toned and almost robotic. "Melly"

"Melly?"

"I wish I could talk to Melly."

STWSTWTW

"I have something to tell you." Melanie told her as she picked the olives from the greasy slice of pizza before her. She and Scarlett were spending their Saturday morning attending a birthday party at Chuck- E – Cheese. A place labeled by Scarlett to be the seventh circle of hell. "I hope it's that you've finally agreed to be my accomplice in setting this place on fire." Scarlett looked around her in disgust. The screaming children, the over-eager employees, the loud ringing of the games. She hated this place. She FUCKING hated this place.

Melly held out a pepperoni to Ella. She grabbed it with her pudgy little hands and sucked on it greedily. "I think India is seeing Frank. I think…. they're dating."

Scarlett laughed. "Good riddance! I don't know who I should feel sorry for, him or her?" Ella threw down her sippy cup. This was a new game Ella had invented. She seemed to enjoy watching her mother repeatedly bend down to pick up her discarded items.

"You're taking this a lot better than I thought you would. I was all set to have to corral you back from murdering my sister-in-law."

Wiping the lip of Ella's sippy cup with a baby wipe, she placed it back in front of her daughter. "No throwing this on the floor, Ella. You're making mommy very angry!" Melanie picked off two more pepperonis and set them on Ella's tray. "Stop giving her the pepperonis, Melly. She's getting it all in her hair. And I know she probably won't be getting a bath this weekend with Frank. Then again, who knows? She might get one regularly now that India is in the picture."

Down went the cup again. "Okay, time to go play." Scarlett lifted her toddler out of the sticky high chair and allowed her walk around the play area on her wobbly little legs. She followed closely behind her daughter in case Ella located any small object and sought to place in her mouth. It was another fun game Ella had created called let's see how much mommy will freak out when I start choking.

"Why are you so mellow?" Melanie stood behind Ella as she climbed up the slide. She was as determined as her mother when she encountered something of interest. Scarlett and Melanie lovingly called it determination, others called it stubbornness. Her little auburn brows were furrowed in concentration as she tried relentlessly to master climbing up the sloping yellow plastic slide from the wrong side. She would make a grunting sound each time she slipped back down; her frilly white socks would not create the needed friction. "Are you seeing someone too?"

Silence.

"You are, aren't you!?"

More silence.

"It's the Captain, isn't it ?!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Scarlett's cheeks flushed pink at Melanie's pet name for Rhett. She was the queen of bestowing nicknames. Frank had loathed it when she would call him Francis. Scarlett could have told Melanie this and she would have stopped immediately. She could… if she didn't love watching Frank suffer. It was one of the greatest joys in her life.

"I knew it! I knew there was something going on between the two of you! I could see it in the way you look at each other. Why didn't you tell me?! We do NOT keep secrets like this from each other, Scarlett O' Bitch Face!" The queen of nicknames….

Why had she not told Melly? They shared everything. Even the same man for a time. This was hard for Scarlett to explain to her. It was hard to explain it to herself. It was complicated; this thing between her and Rhett. She wouldn't call them a "couple". They weren't in a relationship. She hadn't been in one of those since Ashley threw her over for Melanie years ago. But they were a something. She certainly liked Rhett. Well, maybe "like" was too strong of a word. Maybe it wasn't strong enough. She certainly didn't love the man. She'd know if she loved him, wouldn't she? Rhett was fun and handsome and a welcome distraction from her nasty divorce from Frank. That was all. If only she could convince herself that it was true.

Just because her divorce was planned in detail even before the "I do's", it did not mean that it was any less complicated. Frank had decided at the last minute to fight her over custody of Ella. The stupid man. Scarlett was livid at his reneging of their agreement. Rhett listened to her complaints and worries. What if he were awarded shared custody!? She couldn't conceive it. He sat though countless tirades where she would curse and scream and wish a slow, painful death on her ex-husband. She even had talked about hiring a hit-man or using the Irish mafia to kill him. Throughout it all, he didn't patronize her or say some of the ignorant things some people told her after her split with Frank. Her friend Cathleen had even told her that she would find love again. Find love again. As if she had ever found it with Frank in the first place. Rhett didn't do any of those things. He just sat there until she was finished, retiring her protestations with exhaustion, and say," Do you feel better now?".

Yes, she liked having Rhett around. He was an ever-present fixture in her life. He had been for a while now, even before the divorce. She felt a little empty when she hadn't had contact with him daily. Her days just went much better if he was around- if she could simply touch him. Sometimes his busy schedule only allowed for a quick conversation over the phone or a text that said: thinking about you. She hated it. It wasn't enough. She would pout and whine over the phone to him, "when am I going to see you again? I miss you." But it wasn't love. Or was it?

Last weekend, with Wade spending the night with Beau and Ella with Mammy, they spent the weekend making love over and over again in an overpriced hotel room that overlooked downtown Atlanta. He was so gentle with her that it almost brought tears to her eyes. For one thing, she hadn't had sex like this in years. Come to mention it, she hadn't had sex that wasn't like this in years either – unless you count the unconscious coupling with Frank that created Ella. Rhett had awoken her body in ways she had never dreamed were possible. He knew exactly what to do, where to touch her, how to bring her to the peaks of pleasure. But this time, he was different than the times beofre. It was something more. It was in the way he touched her face, the way he gently placed kisses on her shoulder as he slipped the silk straps of her negligee down, the way he held her gaze as he moved on top of her. It was more than lust or friendship. But they were just having fun. Casual sex. Harmless. It wasn't going to lead to anything serious or long term, right?

"It's nothing serious Melly. We're just friends."

"You don't have friends. You hate everyone."

"What are you then- my prisoner? My long-suffering vassal?"

"I'm the one exception. You hate everyone else. So, don't try to tell me that you're just friends."

Ella had reached the middle of the slide before slipping down and hitting her lip on the rounded edges at the bottom. She flung herself back in despair. Possibly in pain, possibly in defeat, but more than likely in frustration. Scarlett quickly scooped up her daughter to check for any real damage. Since cutting her front two incisors she was always biting into her bottom lip. She made a mental note to tell Frank this when she dropped her off to him this afternoon. Not as if he would remember. Ella instantly grabbed at the collar of her mother's shirt, seeking out her favorite source of comfort. Unabashedly, Scarlett brought her baby to her breast. Her cries ended immediately. "What?!", she taunted back at the group of older women who looked at her with shock and revulsion.

"How good of "friends" are you with this guy?"

Scarlett shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just don't want to put some sort of label on it. He's not exactly Mr. monogamy. Sometimes I think he sees me as a sort of flavor of the week thing. One more notch on the bedpost, so to say."

Melanie moved the diaper bag from the top of the booth table and took a seat across from Scarlett. Ella was almost asleep. Her sweet little pink lips sucked at her mother's nipple in lazy movements. Scarlett looked down serenely at her content little girl and brushed a red curl from her forehead. She brought the small dimpled hand, tightly coiled around her index finger, up to her mouth and kissed it. She began unconsciously rocking back and forth, lulling her baby into a deep sleep and herself into a state of relaxation. It was in these moments that Melanie felt the familiar pang of jealousy. If only Ella was hers. She longed for another baby.

"What kind of relationship do you want with him?"

Scarlett kept her head down, her eyes fixed on Ella's puckered lips. "I'm scared, Mel. I'm not exactly known for my good judgement when it comes to men. You of all people should know that. I'm afraid he'll hurt me. This one, Melly. This one … could really hurt me."

"He won't."

"How do you know that?"

"I just do. I'm a very good judge of character."

"Really? Is that why you employ an ex-con to do odd jobs around your house? Do you know he told me last week that 'some women just need killing'?"

"Archie is harmless. And don't overthink this thing with Rhett. It's not complicated at all. It's really very simple, actually. He loves you, Scarlett. He has for years. And I hate to be the one to tell you this, but you're in love with him too."

STWSTWSTW

"Scarlett, please. I need to know you believe me. I would never do something like that."

She thought back to the night Ella had deemed as her rape. That forceful and passionate night so long ago. What Ella had witnessed was the combination of the combustible elements of ecstasy, not rape. She thought of how she had thrilled at their explosive need to feel each other; the desperate removal of their clothes. The frantic fumbling of mouths and hands. She thought about Melly and the way she had trusted Rhett. The way she was so sure of his love for her. No, she didn't for one moment think he raped those women.

"Of course I believe you, Rhett."

STWSTWSTW

Anne gripped her steering wheel at ten and two. She could feel the clamminess gathering beneath her palms. She was nervous. She had barely sat down at her desk this morning when Ross Butler thrust a flash drive in her face and told her to bring it to his brother at his house. "His house?", she had questioned. "Yes. And tell the queen that she can shove it up her ass."

She was shaking as she drove down Peachtree street and down the back roads and secluded alcoves that led to the wealthier part of Atlanta. The closer she came to her destination, the more austere and imposing her surroundings became. A guard came out to check her ID as she entered the private gated community that housed the Butler estate. He smelled of stale cigarettes and sweat. He curled his upper lip as he closely inspected her driver's license and the condition of her old beat-up Acura. He waved her through without a word.

The houses. The houses were huge. But these weren't just houses, though. No, these were mansions. She began to feel contempt for these people and their ostentatious surroundings. How was it fair that these people, probably comprised of the biggest crooks in the county, lived in the lap of luxury while the rest of the world basically existed in squalor. She imagined them all, sitting in their grand dining rooms, gracefully picking at their lobster bisques and foie gras; all the while ignoring the fact that the Mrs. was a massive alcoholic who snorted Jr's inheritance up her nose and that the Mr. was screwing the Puerto Rican nanny every chance he got. The people living below the poverty line weren't Atlanta's depraved. These people were. And Rhett and Scarlett Butler were ones as well.

There was no mistaking which entryway led to the Butler Mansion. It was the largest property in the gated community. Another set of gates separated the street traffic from the estate. The massive ornate gates were framed on both sides by high privacy walls and security cameras. She reached through her window and pushed the red button on the intercom device and said her name. The gates opened to her, revealing the majesty of the house. "This is a house?" It was colossal. She ran her eyes over the marbled exterior; outfitted with turrets and blue slated points. It reminded her a bit of Cinderella's castle in Disney World. She thought that any minute now, the staff from Downtown Abby would be coming out to greet her, with Mickey and Pluto right behind them. Yet, for all its grandeur, there was something about the house that was a bit vulgar. A little too showy. Tacky even. It was a beautiful home, no doubt. But it was cold and imposing.

Leaving her car parked directly in front of the house, she walked up to the front door and rang the bell. She could feel the beads of sweat running down her spine. She looked down at her shoes and began to wish she had chosen a different attire. Suddenly, she felt messy and unkempt.

"Miss Hampton, we've been expecting you. Right this way." The older man ushered her into the grand foyer. It unnerved her that he already seemed to know her name. As if this whole excursion was some sort of ruse to disguise aa more nefarious plan. "Please wait here, miss."

Anne glanced around at her surroundings. The room was large, with high vaulted ceilings that led up to a massive skylight. A grand staircase, framed in rich mahogany and iron, led to the upper levels of the home. At the landing of the stairs was a great mosaic of stained glass depicting a gallant knight, sword drawn high in the air, on his faithful steed.

"Good morning. You'll be Miss Hampton." A sweet-faced lady with kind eyes and her almost white hair pulled tight in a chignon, smiled at her. "I'm Mrs. Fitz, the housekeeper. Follow me please, miss. Mrs. Butler is in the upstairs office." Anne panicked. She didn't want to correct the old matron, but she had to interrupt her, no matter how rude it made her seem. She did not want to converse with Mrs. Butler. "Excuse me, but, I work for Mr. Butler."

"I'm aware of that, Miss. However, you were summoned here by the big boss herself."

Mrs. Fitz guided her to a set of doors and motioned for Anne to enter before her. The room was a hot-bed of activity. People were everywhere; filling the room with body heat and an odor of cigarettes, cologne, and sweat. They were talking on cell phones, sitting at lap tops, talking loudly to each other over the volume of the three television sets that displayed the major news channels. The room itself was very masculine and done in deep reds and purples with brushed brass and leather furniture. The walls were lined wall to wall with hard-backed books and taxidermized animals in various menacing positions. A bar was in the right-hand corner of the room. Expensive bottles of liquor and crystal glassware were artfully placed behind it. This is a man-cave, she thought. A tastefully done man cave. The type that appeared on the pages of GQ and Maxim. She'd expect nothing less from Rhett's home office.

The undeniable centerpiece of the room was a gigantic portrait of Mrs. Butler that covered the expanse between the two picture windows on the back wall. Painted in lush oils, she was encased in an ornate golden frame that glistened in the light. A vison of beauty in her deep green velvet. Her expression was that of disinterest; the same look she often gave Anne. Her chin was slightly lifted in an air of superiority with her perfect aristocratic nose turned up in the air. Her cat-like green eyes were cast downward at an angle that forced whomever would be viewing the portrait to succumb to her majesty. One eyebrow was slightly raised. A closer look of the portrait reveled something more. There was something sensual about her pose. Seductive. Erotic almost. In was in her eyes, the position of her arms, the way she stood, the slight parting of her full lips, the tasteful display of cleavage. There was a reason why this portrait was hidden away in his office. Even though she donned a full-length evening gown, she might as well have been naked. This was private. For his eyes only.

"Anne. Thank you for coming so quickly. Do you have the thumb drive?" Scarlett rushed over to her surrounded by a wave of expensive perfume. She was dressed in a navy-blue boat necked cotton top and wide-legged tan linen pants. Her hair fell in soft, black waves and was tucked behind her porcelain pearl studded ear on one side. Anne was beginning to believe that Scarlett O' Hara was a manifestation of her imagination. She was perfection.

"Rhett is over there on the phone. You may want to ask him if he needs anything from you before I put you to work."

Rhett sat with his shoulders hunched as he whispered into the phone. His usual debonair swagger was replaced by tiredness and angst. His face was puffy and showed a three-day growth of a beard. He looked older somehow. She waited at a respectable distance for him to finish his phone call. The call wasn't about anything pleasant, that she knew for sure. His face was tense as he spoke, forcefully pointing at the air with his forefinger. He tossed the phone on the table in front of him and pinched the skin between his eyes before placing his head in his hands.

"Excuse me, Mr. Butler, but do you need me to do anything for you?".

He ran his hand through his hair, smoothing the greasy grey strands into place. "No, go help Scarlett." She noticed that his voice trembled a little as he spoke. "I'm beyond help."

Anne returned to Scarlett and stood in silence as she waited for her orders. She fingered the knob on the thumb drive, pushing it open and closed. Suddenly, Anne understood what the housekeeper was talking about when she said that Scarlett was the 'big boss '. It was obvious that she was the one in charge here. She gave the orders; clear and concise orders that she expected to be followed. No excuses. She had a cell phone pressed up to her ear by her shoulder while she typed up elaborate formulas on a lap top that she had precariously placed on her knee, the gigantic diamond on her left hand twinkling in the sunlight. A man walked up to her with a document and a pen. He pointed to the signature line without saying a word.

"One second, Uncle Henry. No. Fix these terms and then I'll sign it. Wait, come back. Call the office and get me Beau on the phone." The frazzled man punched in the numbers and held the phone to her other ear.

"I thought you said it wouldn't come to this and that we could settle? I don't want to go to court. I don't know why he's being so relentless, Uncle Henry. Isn't that your job to fund out ?!", she said into one phone.

"Beau, you'll need to get three proposals ready for the state. I'll try and get to the office tomorrow to finalize them before the meeting", she said to the other.

Anne was in awe.

"All set?" Scarlett asked as she handed the lap top to the man beside her. "Follow me. "

She led Anne through a side door that opened into another office, this one feminine in décor. Clearly hers. She took the drive from Anne and shoved it into the MacBook sitting on the pale white Louis XVI desk. This office was less imposing than Mr. Butler's. The impeccable nature of his office made it seem unreal, almost as if it were a film set or photo backdrop. This office, on the other hand, was clearly used- a working office. Toys and papers were strewn across her desk with bank statements shoved between toy cars and action figures. A long-forgotten cup of coffee sat amid the spreadsheets and documents. The artwork that lined the walls were not priceless masterpieces or erotic portraits but were snapshots of her loved ones. She recognized Beau's mother in a few of them. There was no bar in here, but there was a trainset. You wouldn't be able to locate any hard-covered books on philosophy or ancient history on her shelves but would find numerous Madeline picture books as well as books on autism and dyslexia. There were no leather sofas in here, no brushed brass or velvet rugs. But, there was a dog bed, covered in dog hair and filled with a massive St. Bernard, under her desk and a little chair painted with a clock face that said time- out on the seat positioned in the corner.

Scarlett Butler was human after all. She was a busy, hard-working mom, juggling a busy career with a hectic family life. Anne was liking her more and more. "I want to be you when I grow up", she thought.

"What was that?" Anne panicked. Did she say that out loud?

"Mom, I looked through all of the files from '02 to today. Nothing." A pretty, red- headed young woman, not much younger than Anne, walked in the room.

"Anne, this is my daughter, Ella." Anne smiled an offered her hand for pleasantries to be exchanged with the red-haired beauty with the same piercing green eyes as her mother.

"I didn't think you would. I have the files from '99 to '02 here. I had to get them from Ross because they were mysteriously erased from Rhett's hard drive."

"I wonder how that happened?"

Scarlett raised her eyebrow at her daughter's sarcastic comment. "Damn-it, Forest! Go lie down. Ugh, this dog!" She pushed the massive dog that was drooling in her lap out of her way.

"Ever since the two of you became drinking buddies, he loves you the most, mom."

Anne watched as Ella moved to her mother's side of the desk. Both sets of green eyes were hyper-focused on whatever was appearing on the screen. "There." Scarlett turned the laptop toward Anne. "I need you to locate any type of contact that Butler enterprises had with either Sandra Orset or Mary-Faith Castellion during this time frame. Any contact at all. Comb through this for anything. I don't care if it is a chain letter. Nothing is too small to not be recorded."

Rhett swirled the whiskey in glass, purposely avoiding the piercing gaze of his wife's grand portrait. He had to tell her. She would find out for sure. He was stupid to hope that the files would be gone forever. That he could hide this from her. He should have known that Scarlett would have found them. She was like a dog with a bone when she wanted something. She wanted those files and she would get them. She would read them all. All those emails. All the terrible things he had said, all the awful things he had said about her. He had to tell her. He had to accept whatever consequences there would be. Even if it cost him everything. Even if it cost him … her.

He solemnly walked through the door into her office like a lamb to the slaughter. Or maybe not a lamb. Lambs were innocent. He was guilty. There was nothing innocent about him. There never was. For an instant, he wished he had never laid eyes on her. That he had never been mesmerized by her furious temper and jade-hued eyes. They both could have had much simpler and pain-free lives if they had never met. She probably would be married to Ashley by now, raising a brood of blonde haired babies. Maybe Melanie would even still be alive. One thing was for sure. Without her, he would have drank himself to death long ago.

"Pet, can I talk to you for a minute?" Anne saw how Scarlett's daughter closed her eyes in revolution at the nickname Rhett had for her mother.

"Run along, little pet. Be a good kitty now."

Scarlett stood from her chair. "That's enough, Ella. I can't handle your attitude right now. Please. Give it a rest. "

STWSTWSTW

Rhett closed the door behind her as they entered the master suite. She laid the papers she was holding on their bed and sat on the plush chaise near the fireplace. "What's wrong?"

"Those women. I never raped them, I swear on the kids' lives."

"I know. I believe you. I've already told you this, Rhett."

He took a deep breath and sat on the edge of the bed facing her. "I did have a relationship with them, though.

STWTSWTSW

Bonnie burst in her mother's office wearing riding breeches and holding her crop under her arm. "Where's the tyrant? I need to ask her something."

Anne smiled up at her. "Bonnie! It's so nice to see you again."

Bonnie smiled back in a nervous smile. Her pulse was racing. She wondered if Anne knew about her and Beau, about all the kissing and fondling they had done in the past week. How he met her almost everyday at the stables, watching her ride and then devouring her mouth in delicious savagery afterwards.

"You two know each other?"

"Yes. Anne is a friend of Beau." A friend. That's all he called her. Nothing more.

Anne laughed a little before clarifying Bonnie's description of her relationship with Beau. "Beau is actually my boyfriend"

Even though Ella was filled with anger at her step—father and frustration at the way her mother jumped at his command, she couldn't help but notice the pallor in her little sister's face in that very moment.

STWSTWSTW

Tingling numbness shot through her body. 'Not again', she thought. "What kind of relationship, Rhett? Sexual?"

"Scarlett."

"When? During our marriage?"

He said nothing, letting his silence speak for him.

"So, you lied to me. For years, you lied to me. You said it was only Belle you cheated with. How many more women did you fuck throughout our marriage, Rhett? Five? Ten? Twenty?" There was a ringing sound filling her ears. Images of her husbands screwing numerous faceless women flashed before her eyes leaving her feeling dizzy. She wondered how many times he had went directly from her bed to the bed of some whore. Did he screw them in her house? In her bed? She felt sick. How many people knew about this? Isn't it always the wife who was the last to know? Had they all known about Rhett's adulterous liaisons , whispering amongst themselves about poor Mrs. butler? Scarlett Butler: the stupid, little wife who had no clue about what her husband was doing on those long business trips and late nights at the office. How many more women would come forward identifying him as being their once lover?

"Scarlett, please. This was before Cat was born. Before things between us changed. I'm so sorry. I love you so much. I'd die before ever even thinking about doing something like that again. Baby, please look at me."

Scarlett eyed the glass orb that sat on the table beside her. It was supposed to be an anniversary present for Rhett fourteen years ago. Their marriage was in deep trouble. Scarlett wanted to get him something special for Rhett this year, something that showed him that she still loved him and was committed to their marriage. But what to get the man who has everything? She thought about things that Rhett liked and decided on a piece of art. He certainly cherished that portrait of her hanging in his office. She was very apprehensive about selecting the perfect piece for him. He had always mocked her taste. He called their home an architectural monstrosity and her beloved Tara a white elephant. She would have to select something with care if she wanted him to like it. As she searched for inspiration and ideas, she remembered his excitement once at a gallery opening for blown glass artwork. He was amazed at the intricacies and the details that went into making each piece. She had been bored to tears and wished she were home watching Who wants to be a millionaire.

She commissioned the leading artist in glass blowing, Dale Chihuly, to create a custom- made piece that matched the color of her eyes. Rhett loved her eyes and always commented on how beautiful they were. She went to an ophthalmologist to have him scan her irises to isolate the individual stands of green and then sent the colors to Chihuly. The finished work was a perfect masterpiece. The precise orb contained ribbons of glass in numerous shades of green. It was worth every penny. She was thrilled with the result and overflowed with child-like anticipation at giving it to Rhett.

On the morning of their anniversary, she couldn't wait to give it to him. As soon as the sun shone through the windows of her bedroom, she ran through the halls of their home to find him; the orb wrapped delicately in expensive paper. He was eating breakfast alone in the formal dining room, so absorbed in the newspaper, that he did not even notice she had entered the room.

"Happy anniversary, honey" she said cheerfully as she held the present behind her back.

He folder the paper and looked at her with blood-shot eyes. "It is our anniversary, isn't it? You'll forgive me for not remembering. Our haste union isn't exactly something to be celebrated."

Rhett could see that she was disappointed, maybe even hurt. But this little act of hers no longer fooled him. He knew that her crestfallen appearance wasn't because he "forgot" their anniversary, she lacked the emotion to feel that. No, she was upset because she wasn't presented with an expensive Anniversary present. Scarlett was a woman who could be bought with diamonds, shoes, and furs. She didn't feel anything. She didn't love. Anniversaries were like Christmas and birthdays to her: another day to get presents from her husband that she had only married for his money.

"Here", he said reaching into his pocket and pulling out his wallet. He grabbed a fistful of money, well over a grand, and laid it on the table. As he walked away from her, he dolefully called out: "Happy anniversary, darling."

Scarlett held the glass orb in her hand. She felt the weight and cool texture of the blown ribbons of green. She had never given it to him. She couldn't bring herself to do it. It was too beautiful to destroy, so she kept it as a reminder of all they had overcome. Overcome. They overcame nothing. He was still the same. Only she had changed. She was the one who stupidly allowed herself to be manipulated by him. She thought of all the times Rhett had disappointed her throughout their relationship, the times he told her she was stupid and classless, that he knew and had been with prettier women than her, the times he said he didn't love her, that he had never loved her, that he'd married her to keep as a pet, the times he called her a whore and the times he treated her like one. She remembered how she had been left to grieve their baby boy's death on her own; how he had ran away and told her he wanted a divorce right as Melly was dying. She'd never forget the smirk he gave her when she found out about Belle, about who she really was to him. Or the things he said about their unborn baby right before his brief little life began and ended.

"Scarlett, please. Please, say something. I love you, Pet. Believe me."

Pet. A fucking pet. " _I married you to keep as a pet."_

"You were wrong, Melly", she thought. "He did hurt me. He still hurts me. He's hurt me more than all the others combined. He isn't the person you thought him to be." She looked at him and then back at the Chihuly masterpiece. "It's all been a lie".

With all the strength she could muster, she hurled the heavy glass right into his groin.


	22. Chapter 22

Here's another one! Remember: comments make me happy !

Phillipe Robillard hated the blatant commercialism of America. The largess of consumerism here bordered on vulgarity. The distastefulness of it accosted him from the moment he stepped off the plane. And, oh the people! They were all ensconced in their own ethnocentric world, cut off from the reality that was, protected by a blinding sense of bravado. This is the world that his daughter grew up in. His only child was suffocated by all this her entire life. His daughter that refused to speak to him. Yet, being physically in her country made her refusal more understandable. How could one ever appreciate the beauty of the world when you had neon signs, enormous vehicles, and massive portions of calorie-ridden foods at your immediate disposal? He could even understand her devotion to Gerald. The last time he spoke to her, she told him that she didn't need him in her life because she already had a father. He shouldn't have been surprised. She was, for all intents and purposes, American. Americans were not only intent on instant gratification, but also on psychoanalysis; pouring their hearts out to quacks who just nodded their heads and asked, " _how does that make you feel?"_ He could have had a relationship with his child years ago, had she not felt the need to digress into her feelings of abandonment and insufficiency.

He had the misfortune of having a particularly chatty Uber driver drive him from the airport to his hotel. Diggy, a ridiculous name for a person, was an overweight, middle aged man who drove for Uber "for fun". He felt the need to tell Phillipe his life story for some reason. Another wonderful trait that most Americans have. Oversharing persona details. He told of his ex-wife, his diabetes diagnosis, his business partner that did him wrong. Phillipe nodded along, praying that the ride would be over soon.

The sleekness of the _Mandarin Oriental hotel_ was also not to his liking. So much for using the star-rating on as a guide. Talk about American capitalism! The money spent on the polished marble floors alone would be enough to feed the entire population in Denain in France.

"Good morning. Checking in?" The woman at the desk asked him. She was young and beautiful with skin the color of milk chocolate. Phillipe smiled. He was a Frenchman. And like many if his fellow countrymen, he was liked the finer things in life: decent food, excellent wine, and beautiful women. And despite being in his seventies, he was still a ridiculous flirt. Especially when it came to young women.

" _Oui, mademoiselle_ '

As he anticipated, the woman melted like hot butter left in the sun. Phillipe was no fool, and he knew the effect he had on women. His accent alone drove American women wild. He was still, even at his age, staggeringly handsome. His hair, once the deepest ebony, was now completely white; but was still lush and full, curling slightly at the nape of his neck. His skin, once a pale porcelain, was now wrinkled and weathered from the years spent in the French countryside and added a look to distinction to his good looks in the way it did for men like Sean Connery and Gregory Peck. He was still a muscular man, with broad shoulders and strong arms. And when he smiled, parting his full lips and showing his perfect, white teeth, two deep dimples formed in his cheeks. But the most alluring thing about Phillipe, the thing that always drew the ladies in, was his eyes. Shaped like almonds with the ends tilted slightly up, they were astonishing, and the most beautiful shade of pure green.

He was escorted to his suite by a man with perfectly shaped eyebrows and movie-star good looks. He eyed Phillipe hungrily the entire elevator ride. Opening the door to the suite he turned toward Phillipe. "My name's David. Call if you need anything. And I mean _anything_. "

" _Je vous remercie_ ", he replied, placing an American twenty dollar bill into his palm. Tipping a person for doing their job. Another ridiculous American custom. He moved to the window, wrinkling his nose at the overpowering smell of Lysol and goldenrod that permeated the room. He hadn't been to Atlanta in almost thirty years. He was as nervous now as he was then.

He met Ellen Robillard the summer of 1978. She was sent to her father's estate in Beaujolais to escape the clutches of her Irish suiter that wanted to marry her. A few months here would do her good. At the end of the summer she would return to America, a smarter, and hopefully a more tepid young woman. It wouldn't take the entire summer for her to change. In less than a week she had forgotten all about the little Irishman she went with; a man in whom she only dated to spite her overbearing father. In less than two weeks, she had fallen in love with another. In less than three weeks, she and this man, Phillipe, the adopted son of her uncle Rene, were lovers.

Phillipe was apprehensive at first. She was, legally, his cousin and a virgin. He attempted to talk himself out of it. Those first feelings of desire she stirred in him. He was almost twelve years older than her and as much as he was fond of her, he was not madly in love with her. He didn't want to hurt her, both physically and emotionally, but she was just too tempting. By the end of the summer, she was pregnant.

Phillipe said they should get married, but she refused. "No Phillipe. I wouldn't trap you in a loveless marriage because of a baby."

"I do love you, Ellen. I do."

"Not in the way I love you. Not the way I need you to love me."

He offered to find a doctor to "fix" things. He would pay for everything. Once again, she refused.

"I'm going home and I'm going to marry Gerald; that is if he still wants me after I tell him I'm pregnant with another man's child." She smiled at Phillipe, stoically trying to keep the tears from escaping her eyes.

"But, Phillipe."

"Yes" His voice was a whisper.

"I don't regret it. This summer. You. Our baby. I don't regret a thing."

That day was the last time he saw Ellen. She did marry Gerald O' Hara. She did have their child; a little girl she named Katie. Throughout the years, she would sent him pictures and letters detailing little milestones in Katie's life. He treasured each one. Those first photos of a screaming newborn. The little black curl she tucked inside one of the envelopes. The stories that told of her disgust at becoming a big sister. They spoke of other things as well. She wrote that Gerald was an excellent father and never once treated Katie any differently than his subsequent two biological daughters that followed Katie. Katie was the apple of his eye, his little shadow, a true daddy's girl. Daddy's girl. Those two words tore at him more than the bullets he faced fighting for De Gaulle in Algeria. He was her daddy. She looked just like him. How could someone else be her father when she had Phillipe's skin, hair, nose, shaped face, and shattering green eyes. But, despite his feelings they agreed not to tell Katie about him until she was older and could understand. He knew he should feel thankful that another man loved his daughter in a way that he couldn't. That she had a father in her life. Rationally, he knew this; but in his heart, he was engulfed by rage and jealously.

And then, suddenly, the letters stopped. This worried him. Ellen and he conversed at least once a month. It was going on almost three months without any contact. He was about to send a letter to her. He always sent letters to Ellen that were crypted and never contained any information that eluded that he was Katie's father. He never knew if the precocious child would read them. But before he sent the letter, there was contact. It wasn't from Ellen, but from her best friend, Ruth. Ellen had died.

He recalled little about the days leading up to his flight to America or his thoughts upon entry into the American south. But he could recall, with precision-like clarity, the moment he laid eyes on his daughter. His beautiful little girl. He stood in the back at Ellen's memorial service, paying his respects to the woman he briefly knew and had changed his life. He watched as Gerald clung to his girls as he cried for his beloved wife. He waited until the service was over, until the majority of people had left, before approaching him. He stood at Ellen's gravesite, her coffin being lowered into the ground, listening to the thud of the dirt being shoveled onto her wooden casket.

"Mr. O' Hara. I would like to offer my very deepest condolences on the loss of your wife."

Gerald nodded in a mechanical, trance-like way.

"I am a very old friend of Ellen." He took a deep breath before continuing. "I… I am Phillipe." He would never forget the sadness he saw in Gerald's eyes when he looked at him. It was a look that told how Ellen was his life, his everything; and more than anything he wished he had died with her.

"So, you're Phillipe. She does look like you. Ellen said she did." Gerald's eyes went hazy as he mentioned Ellen's name. He was lost suddenly. Hidden away in a far away world where Ellen, young and beautiful, still lived.

"Phillipe, it's so nice to meet you. I'm Ruth. I believe we spoke on the phone. Won't you join us at the house for a drink?"

The house was deplorable. This was a far cry from the loveliness Ellen described in her letters. This was no antebellum plantation; this was a ramshackle building you'd except to see on Skid Row. The grass was overgrown with weeds so thick and tall that they obscured the street view of the house. Toys, chairs, and other random items littered the walkway and front porch. Phillipe carefully avoided the mounds of animal feces as he stepped through the entryway. The smell inside the house made him gag. It was a combination of dirty diapers, cat urine and rotten food. Gerald walked past them and trudged up the stairs, ignoring his children, Ruth, and Phillipe as he drunkenly stumbled to his bedroom. Phillipe's former sympathy for Gerald turned to anger. What kind of man let his children live like this?

" _Merde_." He said at the squalor that surrounded him. Ruth was picking up items, trying to create a place for them to sit.

"Ruth. I'm taking her. I'm taking Katie back with me to France. I'm not leaving her here. "

Ruth gasped and stood frozen. "Are you insane? You can't just show up here and take the child out of the country! She's not even legally yours. Gerald signed her birth certificate. He's her father."

Phillipe turned towards her in fury. "I am her father! And you are the insane one if you think I'm leaving her here like this! Katie! Katie, come here _mon petit_."

"Phillipe, what are you doing?! Think! Do you think this is what Ellen would want? You to come here and take Scarlett away from her sisters, from the only life she's known? Be sensible! "

"Katie, darling? Please come here." He continued to call out.

Ruth stood before him and grabbed his forearms with her hands. "I understand how you feel. Gerald hasn't been himself since Ellen died. I can see why you're concerned with the state of things around here. But, I'm here now. I'm moving in to help take care of the girls. You can't just up and take Scarlett away. What are you going to tell her? That you're her long- lost father? That you're going to whisk her away to a country where she doesn't even speak the language? Leave her here, Phillipe. She's better off here. "

"Like this! She's better off like this? With a man to drunk and deranged to care for her? Not to mention that there are two other children here- one that is still an infant! Whose responsibility are they now that Ellen is gone? No. She leaves here with me today. Katie!"

"I told you, I'm moving in here! And for all your interest and care you have for your daughter, you should know that no one calls her Katie! Her name is Scarlett!"

At the sound of her name, she appeared, peering around the door frame that led to room. Phillipe drank in the image that looked at him. The black lashes, the perfect bow of her lips - he made this, made this lovely little thing one summer almost twelve years ago in a moment of passion with a beautiful woman. He sank to his knees, looking at her at eye level. "Kat…Scarlett. Would you come here?" She looked at Ruth for permission. To her, Phillipe was just a handsome stranger that happened to look a lot like her.

Phillipe felt the sting of tears prick his eyes as she walked toward him. "Do you mind if I call you Katie? ", he said as he took her little hand in his. "It's such a beautiful name." She shook her head no. "Katie, my name is Phillipe and I'm an old friend of your mothers. How would you like to spend some time with me visiting France?"

"France? Sue and Baby too?" Her accent. She should be speaking French, not mispronouncing her words with a southern drawl.

"No. Just you. Would you like that?" He wondered if she could feel it too, this pull in the heart. Did she feel that he loved her? That he was her real father? He should never had let Ellen leave. He should have begged her on his knees to marry him. He should never been too proud to tell her how much he loved her.

"What about school?"

"There are schools in France. Wonderful schools. You'd go to the finest schools in all of Paris. You'd wear the prettiest dresses and speak French. You'll have any _Petitcollin_ _poupée_ you want and sped your holidays collect shells along the _Palavas-les-Flots_. We'd visit the Eiffel tower and eat _flamiche_ in cafés along the _Champs-Élysées_. You'd be just like Madeline, the bravest and most beloved girl in all of Paris. Would you like that? _S'il te plait, ma chérie. Je t'aime_."

She looked back at him and then moved her eyes around the room. He knew she was contemplating his suggestion. She shook her head no. "No. I have to stay here and help my daddy."

" _Je suis ton papa_."

He looked down at her hands, still entwined in his own. He had just told her that he was her father in a language she couldn't understand. He sighed. It was an idea too good to be true. A fantasy: he and his beautiful _bébé_ walking hand and hand along the streets of Paris. He was a fool to think she would ever go with him.

"Can we still be friends, then? May I write to you? Send you little presents from France? "

She smiled at him with his identical dimpled smile. "Yes."

Phillipe turned to Ruth who stood firmly planted in the room, overhearing the entire exchange with a scowling expression. "I want you to see that she wants for nothing." He handed her a wad of American bills. "I'm setting up an account for her before I leave. I'll deposit more money on a regular basis. It's hers when she turns 18. And I want her in a better school. One that teaches French. Will you locate one and let me know? I'll pay the tuition and any fees attached. "

Ruth closed her eyes and took a breath. "And what do I tell Gerald? What reason do I give for Scarlett getting to go to some fancy private school while her sisters go to the local public school here?"

"Tell him whatever you like. And I'll pay the tuition for the other two little ones as well. Tell Gerald they earned a scholarship or something."

They looked at each other, both holding back emotion. They both loved Ellen and they both loved his daughter. "Please take good care of her, Ruth." Turning back to Scarlett, he lowered himself to meet her at eye level. Cupping the side of her face with his right hand, he whispered, " _Au revoir, mon petit amour_ ".

He shuddered when he thought of the trauma he caused her that day. How was he to know that Ellen had been teaching his daughter the French language from the moment she was born. It wasn't until years later that he discovered that his child understood every word he'd said that day; the day he had told her, on the day of her mother's funeral no less, that he was her real father.

He pulled at the thick curtain in front of him and forcefully shut out the light coming in the window. Picking up the black remote lying on the metallic side table situated next to the large, overstuffed bed, he pressed the button turning the television on. Its large, obnoxious, flat screen shone bright blue before materializing into a picture.

The remote slipped from his hand as he sat on the edge of the bed in a mind-numbing trance. There, before his eyes, was his daughter, his Katie, flanked by two men as they faced a barrage of screaming reporters and cameras.

STW

"She looks awful."

Wade braced his palms on his knees, gripping his kneecaps firmly as he watched his mother stand stoically next to his step father as his Uncle Henry spoke at the podium. Aimee stood over his shoulder, watching her future in laws with intensity. "Are we looking at the same woman? She looks gorgeous – as always."

Last night, his sister had called him and told him that Rhett and Uncle Henry would be making a statement to the press tomorrow at 10 am, Georgia time, concerning the rape allegations. She shared no other details and when he asked to speak to their mother, she told him that she would call him after the press conference tomorrow.

"Why can't I talk to her now, Ella ?!" he had growled into the phone.

"Don't scream at me, Wade! I'm just telling you what mom told me to tell you."

He had demanded that she put Bonnie on the phone. Bonnie was as good at keeping secrets as Aunt Pitty. She'd tell him everything he wanted to know. Again, she refused, saying that Bonnie was upset about something and had locked herself in her room. Instead, she gave the phone to Gerry, who rattled on for almost forty minutes about his new Spider Man underwear and how he hadn't had an 'accident" for two whole weeks. Wade didn't have the heart to hang up and listened with feigned interest to each detail. He ignored the fact that at five, his little brother still had "accidents". Wade was fully potty-trained by the time he was two. Then again, his mother, the teen-aged Scarlett O'Hara, put the fear of God in him when it came to using the toilet. He'd been too scared to not comply. Not at all like she did with Gerry; allowing him to decide when he was ready to begin potty training - bestowing hugs and kisses when he had an accident and candy or trinkets when he made it to the toilet on time. Scarlett O' Hara had gone soft in her old age.

Eventually, Gerry paused long enough for Wade to interject.

"Hey Ger, can you go give Mommy the phone?" Wade could barely hear him over the crinkly wrapper of whatever he was consuming. He must had successfully completed the arduous task of pissing in the toilet. "No. She's sad. I heard her crying. I think she's mad at daddy."

"What happened, Gerry? Why is she mad at your daddy?"

"Oh! I forgot to tell you, Wade! The 'bulance was here because daddy broke his wee wee !"

"What?! Uncle Rhett broke his wee-wee? How?"

'What's a wee-wee?" Aimee asked as she walked out of the bathroom still brushing her teeth. Wade covered the front of his phone with his hand. "It's a penis." Amiee grimaced at the thought. A broken penis. How horrible.

Ella grabbed the phone back from their little brother and hung up. All Wade's further attempts at contact went straight to voicemail. They were keeping something from him and he knew it couldn't be good. And so, he sat, ill prepared for whatever statement he was about to witness.

His uncle Henry looked poised and polished as he spoke directly to the screaming press. Poised and polished – everything that a Hamilton should be- everything that they were grooming Wade to be. Wade, the last male descendent to carry on the name of Hamilton. They had been trying to expunge every bit of O' Hara out of him since birth; as if it were a stain that had to be removed. How dare anyone with the prestigious Hamilton pedigree be tainted with the blood of Irish peasants?!

"Thank you for coming today. My client would like to take this moment to make a statement addressing the allegations of rape made by Miss Orset and Miss Castellion." The bursting sounds that came with flashes of cameras could be heard in the background. Rhett moved slowly towards the podium and gripped the sides with both hands. He looked tired and despondent. The bright florescent lights enhanced every wrinkle and magnified the puffs of purple skin underneath his eyes. He looked every bit of his sixty years. Wade surveyed his step father's appearance briefly before focusing on the tightness in his mother's jaw. He knew that look. He saw it every time Rhett's mother would come to visit. She was struggling to hold it together. Whatever Rhett was about to say was not good and she knew it. Of course, Aimee only saw her beauty. To the outside observer, his mother was a picture of elegant beauty. But Wade knew her, really knew her, knew her enough to tell she was hurting.

"I am here to vehemently deny the allegations of rape made by Miss Orset and Miss Castellion. And while I never violated them against their will, I am here to admit that I did have relationships with them over the course of a few years. These relationships, that did occur during my marriage, were inappropriately conducted and were both immorally and abominably wrong. I have hurt my family most of all, and for this I am deeply sorry. Right now, conversations between myself and both the ladies in questions, detailing the mutual consent that was had throughout the illicit relationships, are being released both to the media and to the attorney general's office. I am completely ashamed of my behavior and utterly penitent of the pain I have caused to those I love. While I remained accursed by my perverseness, I am grateful to the opportunity that my actions have provided in shedding light on the unforgiveable violation of person that so many women and men face today. As the father of three daughters, the evils of rape are of special concern. It is because of this, that Butler Enterprises has decided to donate ten million dollars to RAINN, the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network, to help support survivors, help prevent sexual violence, and ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice. Thank you for all for your time."

Wade could feel his heart beating in his chest. Illicit relationships during his marriage? He wanted to kill him. He wanted to beat him until he was a bloody mess of tissue, so unrecognizable that they would need to use dental records to identify his body. It was if the rage inside him had surpassed the capacity of his body and materials into another entity. An entity, so malicious that it fed on brutality and carnage, that then possessed him. He had made up his mind. He was going to kill Rhett. He was going to leave New York immediately and fly to Atlanta where he would then go straight to Rhett's office and blow his brains out. And then, his phone buzzed to life.

"Hi, honey"

His mother. His sweet, beautiful, perfect mother.

"Oh, mama." Was all he said before going into another room to take the call. Aimee didn't follow him, choosing instead to busy herself with answering her emails. She looked down at her left ring finger as she typed. Soon, she'd be a part of this complicated Butler/Hamilton family. Her parents hated the idea. They both saw Wade as a lowly plebian, a fun little distraction for Aimee while she finished college, never a serious contender for their actual son in law. They **_still_** didn't view her engagement to Wade as anything serious. Her mother continually asked her when she was going to get over this "thing" with the Hamilton boy. " _You can't seriously be considering actually marrying him? Are you mad, Amelia?",_ she'd say. And the way her parents were with him! They treated him as if he was ignorant, blubbering fool. Insulting him in covert ways with insinuations and innuendos that Wade was too polite to react to. They might as well call him white trash to his face. He obviously didn't know the outcome of the dinner their parents had together this past summer. She knew that if he had, her father would missing some appendage – or even be dead. Good thing he was raised to never strike women, or she was sure her mother would have suffered the same fate. Aimee was sure Wade would call of the engagement once his found out; but he remained clueless. His mother didn't tell him. It was then that her hero-worship of her future mother in law began. Out of love for her son, she did not describe the scene that must have been one of the most humiliating moments of her life.

STW

Scarlett was the one to greet them fist. She extended her slender right hand, her fingers red-tipped and manicured, to greet them. "Mr. and Mrs. Waters, it's so nice to meet you. I'm Scarlett, Wade's mother." She gestured to Rhett as he tightly gripped the hand of Edward. "This Wade's step father, my husband, Rhett." Rhett moved to greet her, flashing her his piratical smile. "A pleasure to meet you."

Cynthia noticed what a handsome couple they made despite the obvious age difference. Rhett could pass for Wade's grandfather and his mother as his older sister. She figured Scarlett to be, what is now vulgarly called, nothing more than a trophy wife – an abomination that Cynthia simply could not tolerate. More and more, respectable men from good families were bucking propriety by legitimizing their once hidden mistresses by marrying them. Several of her friends had recently been replaced by younger, thinner, and prettier women. Hell, even the first lady of the United States was a trophy wife! She knew Edward had a pretty, young piece on the side. Almost as young as their daughter. She'd seen the hickeys on his neck, smelled foreign perfume lingering on his skin. Would she wake up one day to find him, hand in hand with his little slut, handing her divorce papers? He'd have a hell of a time. She married him for the benefit of his last name and place in society. She didn't care if he enjoyed the "company" of other women as long as he did so discreetly.

Their dinner conversation started with the usual pleasantries: _Where did you get your outfit; it's stunning! I just adore Wade! We fell in love with Aimee when she came to visit us. We're planning to summer at our beach house in Nantucket. New York is just sweltering in the summer. Well, it's nothing compared to the humidity in Atlanta in July. Our youngest is starting Kindergarten this year. Amelia is our only one. You're so lovely. No, you are._

Rhett and Edward added little to the conversation. Both knew their supplemental roles here. This dinner was decidedly matrilineal. Neither man looked too nonplused; after decades of marriage to a strong female, both Rhett and Edward learned to just go with it. Rhett figured that Edward was luckier because he only had two strong women to deal with - really one since Aimee no longer lived at home. He was the poor soul who had not two, but four highly opinionated women in his life. Two of which, acted, thought, and looked identical to each other.

As dinner continued and bottle after bottle of wine was opened, both couples found that they were actually enjoying themselves. Rhett, dapper as always, was able to handle his liquor much better than his wife, who was teetering on the edge of being drunk. It was no matter though, because Cynthia and Edward had already fallen off. Rhett smiled, a swell of love for his wife bursting in his chest, as he watched her cover her giggles with her hand. Her cheeks were pink with inebriation and her eyes glistened with the drunken haze that came after indulging in too much alcohol. She looked at Rhett for a moment, smiling at him the way she did when she was genuinely happy- her dimples deeply crevassed in her cheeks. _You're gorgeous_ , he thought. Damn, he was one lucky man. He couldn't wait for this dinner to be over. He already had champagne chilling in their hotel suite, ready for them. Another hour. One more hour and then he would make their excuses. He planned on wearing the primitive tattoos of the scratches of his wife's nails on his back before morning. She was much more adventurous in their love-making after a couple glasses of wine. Tonight, she had consumed almost an entire bottle. The thought filled Rhett with excited anticipation.

"I'll be honest. I didn't want to meet you." Scarlett said with slightly slurred words.

"I felt the same way! Especially after I googled you!" The table erupted in laughter at Cynthia's confession.

"I can only imagine what you found out. Scarlett has quite the backstory." Rhett said as he took the wine glass in front of Scarlett and drank down the remaining amount. His plans for them tonight would be destroyed if she were too drunk to even walk. He had never, and would never, make love to his wife when she was too disoriented or unconscious. Almost 19 years later, she was still traumatized by what Frank did to her. Still having recurring nightmares that she's running away from him through a misty fog.

Scarlett giggled into her napkin. "But aren't you glad you did?" she asked. Cynthia agreed. Scarlett hiccoughed. It sounded like the mewing of a kitten. Here is where the complexity of Scarlett became obvious to keen observers. In appearance, she was every man's fantasy. Without even trying, her facial expressions alone made men aroused. She was also hard-headed and confident, a fine business woman. A real "ball-buster". But when she let her guard down, you could see that she was still so innocent and trusting - needing someone to protect her. Almost as if she was like a little girl at heart.

"So, Scarlett, what do you think about this whole wedding fiasco?" Finally. Both couples knew the reason they were meeting was to discuss the wedding and Scarlett was glad that it was Cynthia, and not she, who had brought it up.

"You tell me yours first."

Cynthia drank a sip of water from her water goblet." I'm against it." Scarlett loudly grabbed the edge of the table with both hands as though Cynthia had said something extraordinary profound. "I feel the exact same way! Why do they have get married so soon? They're both kids. Be engaged for a couple of years- whatever. Why rush?" Cynthia pointed to Edward. "We don't even want them to have a prolonged engagement. We just want it all to end." Rhett looked at Edward. Edward briefly met his eyes and then turned his attention back to his wife. Dangerous waters lay ahead. "I mean, let's be honest, they can't possibly make it as a couple. I'm sure that Amelia finds Wade charming, but she can't **_marry_** him! She's a **_Waters_** , and Wade's…. well Wade's…Wade."

Scarlett narrowed her eyes. "Sorry Cynthia, but it sounds to me that you're saying that Wade's not good enough to marry your daughter." Cynthia softened her facial features and spoke to Scarlett as though she were a wayward and ignorant child. "The Waters' family goes back generations. Generation after Generation has carved its niche in American history. Amelia's ancestors were scions of industry- politicians, business owners, brokers, European aristocracy even. We're related to the Kennedys for heaven's sake. Certain things are expected of her, and of her husband. It's not that I don't like Wade. I do. He's a wonderful young man. He's just not a good fit for ** _this_** family."

"And what would the perfect match for the Waters' family look like? Like Edward here? Like you? A polished exterior with a repulsive interior?"

Cynthia reached across the table and placed it on top of Scarlett's. "I'm sorry. I hope I didn't offend you. It's just that Amelia's husband requires a specific type of background." Scarlett yanked her hand back as if Cynthia's touch had burned her. She sucked in her top lip and bit down. Her eyes closed as she took in a deep breath. This was an action Rhett recognized. She did this when she was trying to remain calm in a stressful situation.

 _Mom, is it illegal to hit a parked car and then leave? Scarlett, I've made a mess of these numbers again. Mrs. Butler, this is Sister Angelica over at St. Thomas'. I have Catherine in my office again. Mom, Aunt Sue is on the phone. I'm sorry my Pet, but my mother is coming to visit for a few days. Mommy, I had an accident._

"Hey, Ed" Rhett said as he moved the steak knife and dinner fork out of his wife's reach. She was known to use any available item as a weapon when necessary, but there was only so much he could take away from her without creating a scene in a crowded restaurant. "Let's exchange information now."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that my wife is about to jump over this table and seriously hurt your wife. I always find it makes things much easier when we handle these little things beforehand and not wait until the police show up."

Scarlett tucked a glistening strand of black hair behind her ear and noticed the lack of cutlery in front of her. "And Wade's background is not good enough. Is that what you're saying?" Cynthia waved her hand in the air in a way that affirmed Scarlett's statement. "For lack of a better phrase, yes." Scarlett was struck dumb. She looked at her husband with a look of utter amazement. Did this woman actually say that Wade was not GOOD ENOUGH to marry her daughter?

She closed her eyes as she shook her head in disgust.

"Fiddle-de- **_fucking_** -de."

Rhett braced himself in preparation for the split-second maneuvering he would have to do to catch Scarlett before she made it to the other side of the table and killed Aimee's mother.

"Well, I'm afraid you don't have the full picture, Cynthia. Allow me to enlighten you. I had Wade when I was 17. I did not go to college and I never married his father. In fact, I barely knew him. I started sleeping with my best friend's husband right after Wade's father died. That lasted, oh I don't know, say about four years. My second husband is the scum of the earth and to say that I loathe him would be a massive understatement. When I divorced him, I took him to the cleaners and now he has to check with me before he even takes a shit. Oh, I almost forgot to add that we just found out that our daughter is having sex with Rhett's old mistress' son. Rhett" she pointed at him "is my second husband and third "baby-daddy" as we white-trash like to say. Wade has three sisters and one brother." She counted them out on her fingers. "Ella, who, as I said before, is screwing her ex-con boyfriend, Bonnie, who has her heart set on driving me insane and is willfully disobedient, Cat, who is autistic and is one discretion away from getting expelled from school, and Gerry, our youngest, who sometimes likes to wear princess dresses and is convinced that he is Chase from Paw Patrol "

"Scarlett." Rhett warned. The diners at nearby tables were staring to stare. She was getting to the point in her anger that he referred to as "getting her Irish up". The point where she would undoubtably declare that she was raised in the ghetto and dare " _any of y'all motherfuckers_ " to try her.

"I was raised in one of the poorest counties in Georgia in the middle of the 'hood." Here it was. This would end with the police escorting her into a squad car. He knew it. "My father was an alcoholic and would go on drunken benders for days at a time. My mother died when I was 11 and I was raised by her best friend, who just so happened to be black. And yes, I consider her to be my mother and Wade's grandmother. I have two sisters, one who suffers from Bi-polar disorder and has had me arrested twice for simple battery and assault, and another who has practically destroyed her marriage trying to get pregnant. My brother in law, Will, lost his leg in Afghanistan and now uses his prosthetic to scare his kids after he gets stoned out of his mind watching NASCAR and my other brother in law, Brent, is a former meth-head with PTSD. My mother-in-law is the spawn of satan and more and more, I fantasize about the day we put her in a home. Rhett's brother, Ross - Wade's uncle, is a womanizing philanderer who brought his lovely wife home the gift of Chlamydia last Christmas and his sister is a closeted lesbian who is afraid to tell her mother that she's gay. And despite all of this, we are a family. A complicated, dysfunctional, backwoods family from down south. We love Jesus and our guns and parade our crazy on the front porch for all to see. And we will not tolerate any ignorant snobby bitches who try and pass judgement on us. You see, Wade comes from a background rich in the things that really do matter. Love. Compassion. Sacrifice. Goodness. And, As God as my witness, I'd give my life for them. Any of them. And If your daughter should be so **fortunate** as to marry my son and become a member of this family, I'd give it for her too."

She moved to stand up. Rhett gripped her forearm tightly. Not only did she become a profanity-laced girl from the hood when she was like this, she also seemed to gain enormous strength that she originally did not possess. "We're leaving." Rhett thanked God for the blatant miracle of His Grace that constricted Scarlett's anger.

"I plan on sharing all this information with Amelia. She'll never marry your son. She'll break his heart. I'll make sure of it."

Scarlett stopped in her tracks. Rhett could see the anger in her chest, in each rise and fall of her sternum. Rhett wondered if he should express his condolences to Edward now on the sudden passing of his wife or wait until later. Scarlett moved close to Cynthia. She looked her straight in the eye with an eerie calmness. She spoke softly.

"You're protected right now because we're in New York and you're surrounded by innocent bystanders. But sooner or later, you'll come through Atlanta. Even if it's a short layover. Even if you're just passing through. And when you do, I'll be waiting for you. I **will** find you. You just fucked with the wrong bitch."

STW

Cynthia had told Amiee the whole story. Every sordid detail. Aimee was so angry that she was shaking. "How could you, mother!? "

Edward and Cynthia sat as their daughter enumerated their many faults- one by one. "But Amelia, she threatened me. She physically threatened me! She said she would ' ** _find me_** '. She's insane. I can't believe that you're upset at _me_ and not her."

"You deserve everything you get!"

That was the last time Amiee darkened the threshold of her parents Manhattan apartment. She told her parents that she wouldn't be returning until her mother apologized to Wade's mother. She hadn't heard from either of her parents since. They could be as stubborn as she could. And then, out of the blue, this past Monday her mother called and said that she was sorry for the way she acted and to show Amelia and Wade how much she was behind their engagement, she was going to through them a lavish engagement party the upcoming weekend. Aimee didn't trust her mother's motives for a second. "Let's not go.", she told Wade. "You know she's just doing this to make a fool out of you. She's relentless, Wade. She won't stop this until she's forced to." Wade, in all his loving goodness, had kissed her and said that he didn't care. He loved her enough to put up with all the covert humiliation and veiled insults she hurled at him.

STW

Wade came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. As she moved to face him she could see that he had been crying. She had read, or had possibly heard, that you could tell what kind of husband a man would be by the relationship he had with his mother. If that's true, Aimee could be sure to be loved and adored. She laid her head on his chest and listened to the melodic sounds of his heartbeat.

"Aimee, I have to fly to Atlanta tomorrow morning. Please say you'll come with me."


	23. Chapter 23

Scarlett stared blankly at her computer screen, willing the numbers to make sense. As usual, when her stress level reached its zenith, she found solace behind her desk at work. Losing herself in the predictability and unchanging world of formulas and equations. Two plus two would always equal four, seven times three would always equal twenty-one. Today, she sat in front of them, comprehending nothing and relaxing in the mundane simplicity of the neatly placed black numbers that lay unmoving on her screen.

Her office had grown stuffy in her absence. Had it always smelled this way, she questioned. The potted azalea that one of her clients had given her was dead. Its brown leaves added a wilting sense of despondency to her already depressed mood. She was surprised that it lived this long.

Suddenly, the dead plant took on new meaning to her. She walked to the window sill where the plant was housed and felt the soil in the pot. Dry. Bone dry. No one had watered it in weeks and in the few times she came to the office herself, she had forgotten as well. She ran her fingers over that ceramic lip of the pot. She was responsible for its care and as with so many things in her life, she couldn't count on anyone else to help her carry the load. Once again, she was left solely responsible - the one who had to do the dirty work, the one who had to buoy others' spirits by ignoring what she felt. She was dying inside. Crumbling under the state of her marriage, Wade and Ella's relationship with Rhett, Phillipe being in Atlanta and trying to contact her. Her fake dimpled smile led them all to believe that everything was fine; that she was okay, that everything would be okay. She brought the dead plant into her lap as she sat in the nearby chair and cried.

There was a soft knock on her door. "Aunt Scarlett?"

She ran her index finger underneath her eyes to remove any mascara residue that had become entwined with her tears. She sniffed back her remaining sobs. "Yes"

"Here are the proposals. I hope they're okay." Beau handed her three documents, all professional in their prestation, with a blue background and the company logo emblazed on the covers. Scarlett flipped through them, checking the boxes in her head to see that they contained everything needed. "You are worth your weight in gold, Beau. These are perfect." Scarlett was never one to bestow compliments without them being earned. Beau, knowing this about his aunt, beamed with pride.

"You're sure you don't want me to sit in on the meeting with you?" Since his mother's death, his Aunt Scarlett had been like a mother to him. And like her other, biological children, he monitored her closely- now even closer than usual after what happened with Rhett. "No, the state has been hounding us to speak with me. If I put them off any longer, I'm afraid they'll chose another company and we honestly can't afford to lose their business."

"Are we in financial trouble, Aunt Scarlett?"

She looked at his young and handsome face, so eager to please, such a determined worker. Financial trouble? Money was only the start of her troubles. _No. I just need to enough for a life on my own with three kids left to raise_. _Your Uncle Rhett is packing his things as we speak._

" No, honey. We're fine. But one thing I've learned to be true 100% of time is that it's always good to have a nice stockpile stored away. Supply and demand can fluctuate. One minute you're up, the next you're down. Never count on future investments or earnings. If the money's not in the bank, it doesn't exist. Remember that, Beau."

"Yes, ma'am."

The speaker on her office phone crackled with life. There was no voice coming through, only static-filled white noise. Hugh. After all this time, he still didn't know how to work the damn phones. She had even placed sticky notes on the intercom buttons that said things like: PUSH ME FIRST and PUNCH IN EXTENSION HERE.

"What, Hugh?" Her voice was flat as she questioned his need.

"There's someone out here to see you and I even remembered to ask his name this time." There was a period of silence.

"Do you intend on sharing this information with me or do you plan on keeping it for your own personal use?" She lifted her green eyes to Beau in frustration, who in turn, tried to stifle his laughter.

Since coming to work here, he had a hard time comprehending how his Aunt Scarlett had never fired Hugh. He was a complete moron. Just last week he had come into Beau's office proudly displaying his new lower back tattoo. He said that it was a Chinese symbol meaning warrior.

"Hugh! Where did you get this tattoo? It's infected!"

"No, it's okay. They said this would happen and to just keep it clean and dry."

"No. That's not normal. "

Beau pulled Hugh into Scarlett's office for a second opinion. "Aunt Scarlett, look at this.", he said as he turned Hugh around and lifted his shirt to expose the puss- oozing ink. "Oh! "she said, leaning as far back in her desk chair as she could. "You need to go to urgent care right now. That's really infected."

Very few people knew that she had her own "tramp-stamp"- a four leaf clover resulting from a drunken night with her sisters. They each had one.

Hugh winced as his shirt was lowered. "No. Not necessary. My tattoo means warrior. What kind of warrior goes to the hospital for a little infection?" Scarlett removed her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. "The kind that doesn't want to die. Go. Now. Or you're fired." Hugh reluctantly left; headed to urgent care and the inevitable prescription of high dosage anti-biotics.

"What would posses him to get a lower back tattoo anyway?", Beau asked as he watched Hugh collect his things and head to the elevator. Scarlett rested her elbows on her deck and laid her forehead in the hollow of her palm. "Who knows. I've stopped looking for meaning when it comes to Hugh a long time ago. He said it means warrior?" She shook her head. "That tattoo probably means: **insert below**."

STW

"It's the developer for the state. Should I send him in?"

"You're sure you don't want me to stay?" Beau asked again. Scarlett shook her head no and gave her nephew a kiss on his cheek. "I'll be fine. I know where to find you if I need you." Beau lingered a minute longer. He wanted to ask her about Bonnie. Ask her if she had said anything to her about him, about _them_.

She had refused to speak to him for weeks after her conversation with Anne. She blocked him from her on all the social media sites. Every time he went to the house she wasn't there or refused to come down. He tried to talk to her at the stables, meeting her there as he had before - only to have him escorted off the property for trespassing. "You're disturbing the riders and they need to concentrate.", the man had said as he pushed him toward the exit. Beau could see Bonnie in the distance. Her chin was raised in defiance and superiority as she sat, perfectly poised, atop a glistening thoroughbred.

As a last ditch effort, he asked his Aunt if he could help her out by picking up the kids from school. It wasn't an ideal situation of course. He'd have Cat and Gerry in the car too, but it was the only way he could think of to talk to her. Plus, he knew her school day ended about thirty minutes before her siblings, so at least there was some time for them to speak privately.

He sat in his truck, feeling like a sleaze-ball, waiting outside her high school. His breath caught as he saw her walk out of the bright, blue doors. She was as beautiful as ever and incredibly sexy in the private school uniform she wore. "Bonnie!", he yelled out of his open window to get her attention. She looked in the direction of the sound and scowled as she noticed him. For the rest of his life, Beau would consider the walk Bonnie sulkily made to his truck that day one of the most erotic moments he had ever experienced. She leaned into the open window, smelling of vanilla and mint. "Are you stalking me now?"

"Your mom asked if I could bring you home. Get in."

She slammed the door as she flopped down in the front seat. "This truck still stinks. I suggest you get one of those car clips with air-freshener before you pick up your _girlfriend_." She turned to look out of the window and fingered the hem of her skirt. She didn't look at him once. She couldn't. She wouldn't let him see her cry.

Beau wanted to pull her into his arms, to kiss her, to tell her he was crazy about her and only her, but he knew that her response would not be one he welcomed. As much as Bonnie hated to hear it, she was her mother made over. And Beau knew, better than most, that his aunt's typical reaction to emotional hurt was violence. He pulled the truck into gear and merged onto the coming traffic. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Anne isn't my girlfriend. I don't know why she said that."

"Whatever. It's immaterial to me what she is to you." She knew she didn't sound convincing, but this was the best she could do. Beau let out a frustrated huff of air and pulled the truck over onto the side of the road and faced her. "Look at me. I am not in a relationship with Anne or with anyone else for that matter."

Her brows were furrowed in anger. The sloping black arches brought up the tips of her eyes even more than usual.

"How could I be, when I'm in love with you? "

She blinked in rapid succession. Her thick eyelashes fluttering before him. " _In love_ with me?", she questioned in disbelief as her blue eyes began spilling over with tears.

"Believe me, I've tried to talk myself out of it, but I can't. I love you, Bonnie. You and your vain, spoiled, selfish, temperamental, hard-headed ways. I know this isn't going to be easy. We're practically related and I'm five years older than you, not to mention what Wade or your father will think or say, but I love you. I really love you."

She was silent at his admission.

"Say something.", he begged her.

She unbuckled her seatbelt and leaned toward him. "Kiss me. Before you try and talk yourself out of it."

Their lips meet in urgent fervor; quickly increasing in passion and need. Their breath was intermingling in loud gasps for air interspersed with whimpers and moans. Beau gently pushed back her shoulders to separate them. This was leading somewhere else – somewhere he was not willing to go with her, not for some time. Her eyes were bright, her lips swollen, as she repeated those three little words back to him.

"I love you too; you red-necked, hillbilly kidnapper. More than I ever thought was possible."

STW

Scarlett ran her fingers through her hair and smoothed the strands into pace. She did a quick check of her makeup and pinched her cheeks. "Send him in, Hugh."

As soon as he walked through her door, she froze. A huge smile spread across his handsome face. It was so infectious that she couldn't keep from smiling too. "Is this a joke?"

He walked toward her, his gait as regal as his accent, and brought her hand to his lips. "Good morning. My name's Richard Fenton. I'm the developer of the new housing units for the state." He smiled at her again. He was living proof that men could be beautiful." And you are?", he questioned her playfully.

"Very surprised." She was so glad she decided to get properly dressed today. For the last few days, weeks almost, she barely had enough energy to change out of her yoga pants and brush her teeth. Grief does that to you. But today, she looked like her normal, gorgeous self. _Never let them see you sweat._

"It's nice to meet you, Miss very surprised. May I sit down?"

"Please. I believe we have some proposals for you to consider, Mr. Fenton."

"With pleasure, _madame_."

She like this little game they were playing. It felt flirty and even a bit sexy to pretend that they didn't know one another. A type of role-playing.

Rhett had tried to suggest role-playing a few times throughout their marriage. He'd come up with elaborate scenarios for them to act out. Usually Scarlett listened, never intending to actually do any of them. Some of them included things that she was sure were illegal, not to mention immoral.

 _"You want to role play?" she asked him after a long oration about a fantasy he wanted them to enact." Okay. I'll play the exhausted wife who goes to sleep after working for 12 hours straight today, and you'll be the idiot husband who suggests role-playing to her at 10:30 on a Tuesday night."_

 _"That's a very elaborate scenario, but I guess it'll work."_

 _"Rhett, I swear, if you try and wake me up to have sex, I'm going to attach a pair of jumper cables to your testicles."_

He never asked her to role-play again.

Suddenly, the memory turned sour. Did he role-play with those other women? Is that the reason he cheated on her so often and with so many women? Because she didn't meet his _needs_?

After the discovery of his relationships with Orset and Castellion, she demanded that he inform her of any other sexual skeletons he had hiding in his closet. Her Uncle Henry had been there with her. "It's for the best, Rhett. We want to be prepared to handle it in case any other women come forward. Be proactive so to speak."

There were five. One even occurring after Cat was born. After they gave their marriage a second shot. And these were the only ones she had proof of. There could be more. There probably were. Rhett swore there weren't, but she didn't believe him. She no longer believed anything that came out of his mouth.

There was no elevation or emotion in her voice when she told him to pack his things and to get out of her house.

Richard had noticed the change in her mood. Damn her expressive face! "Are you okay, Scarlett? If you'd rather I work with someone else, just tell me. It'd be fine."

"Don't be silly. I'm fine. It's just been a long morning."

She spread the three proposals across her desk for him. This was a tactic she always used with clients. She would quote them one price, a low one, always undercutting the competition. Once they had signed the contract with the builder, she would have them in to view three proposals at varying levels of cost. There would be the initial quote-a bare-boned approach to the job, the moderate one – with a more than moderate increase in price, and the premium one that spared no expense and included all the bells and whistles. Almost everyone chose the moderate one. More than expected, she was even able to get customers to go premium. A little flash of cleavage and a sultry narrowing of her eyes was typically all it took.

She noticed her engagement ring as she shifted the documents and felt a sob rising in her throat. She berated herself for this inopportune display of emotion. _Stop this, Scarlett O' Hara! Pull yourself together. This is no time to lose your shit._ Even her inward debasement of self wasn't strong enough to stop it. She gripped the edge of her desk with one hand and brought the other up to cover her face and cried. "I'm sorry, Richard. I'm just not in a good place right now."

"Here", he said softly while handing her his handkerchief.

"I'm usually not like this.", she cried into the soft cotton as she sat down. "I'm sure you've seen the news about my husband's infidelity." He gave a slight nod. "Thank you for not pretending you hadn't seen it.

"Well, I just found out that there were five other women he slept with. Five! And this is not including the full-on mistress that I knew about." Richard remained silent as she continued. "We're separating. I told him this morning that I wanted him out of my house before I get home from work today.

Five other women." She whispered as she wiped her nose and lifted her tear stained face up at Richard.

"I'm so sorry, I don't know why I told you all of this. I'm turning into a lunatic. I'll completely understand if you want to go with another lumber supplier, Richard."

"It's fine. Really. I'm sorry you're going through this. "He lifted his palm to indicate that she keep the soiled handkerchief as she tried to hand it back to him. "Luke's mother, my ex-wife Charlotte, was… is…. an addict. I came home from work one day to find her in bed with a man. One of many, whom I later found out, paid her with drugs for sex. She was high as a kite. They both were. They didn't even stop having sex when I came in the room. But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was when she told me that she had no idea where she had left Luke. He was four months old at the time. He wasn't in the flat and she couldn't remember where she had been earlier so that we could retrace her steps. I was sure he was dead. It was the middle of December and it had been raining off and on all day. I found him - three hour later, asleep in his pram, in only a nappy and covered by a towel, which was left under a tree in St. James' park. She refused to get help and after we divorced, she skipped town and we haven't seen or heard from her ever since. I know it's not the same of course, but I do think I partially understand your heartbreak. I know how devastating it is when the person you love more than anything turns into a complete stranger."

Scarlett reached across her desk and took his hand in hers. "Thank you for telling me this, Richard. I think that more than anything right now, I just need someone to understand and to talk to."

He smiled at her; his own eyes beginning to glisten. "Anytime. And for your information, Miss very surprised, I will **not** be taking my, or more accurately – the states', business elsewhere."

"Well then," she smiled, "let's get down to business, shall we?"

At her insistence, he decided on the moderate plan. "The basic one is really crap and the premium one is just silly little things included to drive up the price. Pick the moderate one. It's the best.", she told him honestly. They began discussing the details of project, how much lumber would be needed and the difference in the types of pre-treatment they could do and established a time-line for completion.

Neither of them seemed to notice that throughout the entire time, they were still holding hands.

STW

She felt lighter when Richard left. Not whole by any means, but a little more put together. She felt as if she were now able to talk to her son. She knew that he would not handle her tears well. He had arrived with his fiancé a week earlier and came at Rhett with so much anger that she thought it best that he and Aimee stay with Aunt Pitty and Uncle Peter until things calmed down. "Siri, call Wade."

Wade answered immediately. He had once-again assumed the role of her protector and was available to her at a moment's notice.

"Hi, honey. Can you do me a big favor? Ella has Bonnie, Cat, and Gerry with her today, but she has to go somewhere with Taz tonight, so I was wondering if she could drop them off to you around six and then Aimee and you could maybe take them out to dinner or something before bringing them back home around ten?" He agreed but questioned her need to have his younger siblings out of the house all day. She didn't want to lie to him, but neither did she want to go into the details. "I just do. Please, Wade. We'll talk about this later, okay?" He ended the conversation the way he always did. _I love you, mama_.

She glanced up at the ceiling, and speaking to heaven said, "We have created a wonderful man, Charlie."

STW

She hated the idea of having to go home. She didn't know which would hurt worse, seeing Rhett leaving or seeing all his belongings gone. She turned off her laptop and shoved it into her bag. She called out to Beau that she was leaving for the day before noticing a man sitting alone in the lobby. He was walking up to her; slightly smiling and determined. He was young, probably around the same age as Wade.

"Katie Scarlett O' Hara Butler?"

"Yes."

He thrust a document towards her. "Consider yourself served."

STW

"Unbelievable". She mouthed the word to herself as she drove. She wanted to call Michael and tell what a piece of shit she thought he was and question his motives. It wasn't as though Mammy had millions stowed away. Yes, she had a sizeable amount of cash left due to her assets, but nothing that would justify taking them to court. " _Do not call him, Scarlett. Leave this to me_." Henry had said.

" _You told me that all we had to do was file some paperwork and this would over because Georgia does not follow the Probate Code! Simple and done with, you said! This_ ," she waved the summons in her hand in the air _"is not simple and done with, Uncle Henry!"_

"Call Sue." She said the words clearly and with the smallest amount of accent that she could muster. She couldn't believe that with all the technological advances out there in the world, they still hadn't created computers capable of deciphering the southern accent.

"Hellllo" Will answered with his typical sing-song voice.

She was so grateful for Will. Just hearing his voice made her feel calmer. He was so much more than a brother in law. Sue really didn't deserve him.

"Will, I was just served court papers at work. Michael is fucking suing us. He's suing us! This imbecile is taking us to court over Mammy's will. He's claiming that we, that I especially, placed her under undue distress and made her leave us everything in her will. He's even saying that my actions were racially motivated. RACIALLY MOTIVATED! Can you fucking believe this !?"

She could hear Will shifting the tobacco around in his mouth and spitting the juice out. As much as she loved Will, she was disgusted with his "dipping" habit and always told him so.

"He's suin' us all? As a group or as in'vduals?"

If her car had trouble understanding her, there was no way it would ever be able to decipher **anything** that came out of Will's mouth.

"It says", she began reading the document while taking furtive glances at the road. "In the superior court of Fulton county, state of Georgia: Michael James McDaniel, plaintiff, versus Katie Scarlett O' Hara Butler, Susan Elinor O' Hara Benteen, and Caroline Irene O' Hara Tarleton, defendants. Where's Sue? I need to talk to her."

"She taken' a lil' reast. She's bin a lil' green unner the gills dis mornin'."

"What does she have now, Ebola?" Suellen was a well known hypochondriac.

Will laughed a nervous chuckle. " Not par-tic-u-lar-ly sick. It's jus that… Well…..She's in a fix again."

"Again?! I swear, you two are like freaking rabbits."

"But it mite be a boy this tyme, Scarlett!"

Fabulous. Sue and Will could barely stay afloat as it is. And that was **with** Scarlett paying almost half their bills. Plus, they lived FOR FREE in Tara. Rhett paid off its mortgage for her as a wedding present. Now they would have **_seven_** kids. Not to mention that the baby would probably be another girl. She knew Suellen would want her to tell Careen too. _"It's just too upsetting for me_.", she'd say to Scarlett. " _Please do this for me_ , _Sissy_."- resorting back to calling her Sissy again. Manipulative bitch- she only did it when she wanted something. She knew Scarlett refused her nothing when she did that. It reminded her of when they were little and she'd look at her with her big, scared eyes. " _What do we do now, Sissy_?" She'd be the one to tell Careen and watch her pretend to be happy for Sue and Will- be her usual sweet self. Inwardly though, she would be dying. And Scarlett would have to be the one to get her through it. As usual.

"Congratulations, Will. Tell 'Michelle Duggar' over there to call me when she feels better."

STW

Scarlett pulled the sun visor down to shield her eyes from the piercing Georgia sun. She had an epic migraine. The kind that would get so intense that she could only find relief in a freezing dark room, losing touch with reality with the help of a Percocet. She started feeling sick; her stomach lurching at each stab pain to her temples.

What a fitting end to the day, she thought. Separating from her husband, crying like a fool in front of a client, getting sued, Sue pregnant again, having to tell Careen about it, and now – vomiting in the car. Wonderful. She lowered her window, hoping that the cool air would settle her stomach. As she turned toward the entry to the front gate of her neighborhood, she felt and heard the sound of her wheels scrapping the curb.

"You okay there, Miz Butler?", the attendant asked as she pulled up to the gatehouse. She tried to say she was fine; that all she needed was to lie down. She could hear herself mumbling to him, making incoherent sounds as the sunlight and noise overtook her. She was having trouble seeing him. He looked blurry all of a sudden- almost as if she were viewing him through a haze. Her head suddenly felt very heavy. She could barely keep her eyes open. The last thing she remembered was the attendant yelling her name and reaching into her car to grab her.

STW

"Scarlett. Scarlett can you hear me?" Her eyes fluttered open to see Gordon Meade standing before her. "You're in the ER. You fainted.", he said as he shone a pen light into her eyes. "When was the last time you ate something. You're way too thin."

She blinked to regain her bearings against the blindingly bright, overhead florescent light. He repeated his question to her.

"Are you starving yourself?"

When was the last time she ate something? Food was the last thing on her mind. Looking back, the last thing she remembered eating was a package of fruit snacks … two days ago. And Gordon was right. She was too thin. She had always been slender, but now, she was downright skinny. Ugly skinny. The kind that makes you look emaciated, your hair and skin dull, your eyes hollowed- out. Complete despair is really the best diet known to mankind, she thought. She could picture the ads: _Want to shed a few pounds? Catch your husband cheating on you! Get sued! The weight will fly off!_

"I've had a lot on my mind, Gordon, that's all."

"Lean forward." He said as he reached under her shirt and pressed the cold stethoscope to her back. "Breathe in. Again. One more time. "He made a grunt-like, humming sound. "Does it hurt when I do this?" He pressed at her side. She winced at the sharp pain. She laid back after enduring more poking and prodding and embarrassing questions about her last menstrual cycle and the possibility of her being pregnant. Gordon put his hands in his pocket and gave her a stern look. His hair and beard were now completely white. He reminded her of Colonel Sanders.

She was certain that Gordon had heard all the juicy gossip about her and Rhett from his wife. One of the biggest problems living in the south was that everyone knew each other's business. And now he would give her some ridiculous lecture on fidelity in marriage and proper nutrition.

"I know you're going through a lot right now, but you need to take better care of yourself. What if you'd passed out while driving on the highway and crashed into a bunch of kids walking home from school? What if you had your own kids in the car? You need to think, Scarlett. Your actions affect other people."

She nodded her head in understanding. He was right.

"And I don't like the way your lungs sound. Has it been hurting to breathe?"

"Yes"

Gordon ran his hand through his hair as he sat on the end of the stiff hospital bed. "Look at me, young lady." She shamefully obliged. "Your left lung has never fully healed. You suffered a **_severe_** traumatic pneumothorax in your accident. There is still a big chance your lung could all of a sudden collapse. You know what happens if it does?"

"I die."

"That's right, you die. You also have a stent in your aorta. What happens if your stress level causes your blood pressure to sky-rocket and completely tears it?"

"I die."

"You have no spleen. Which means you are ten times more likely to get extremely sick and are highly susceptible to infectious diseases. What happens if you contract a serious illness like viral pneumonia or even a bad case of the flu and don't get immediate treatment?"

"I die." She looked down the circular wet dots that formed on the blanket as her tears fell from her cheeks.

"You almost died in your accident. Died. That's how bad it was. I honestly did not think you'd make it. I told Melanie and Ruth that they needed to prepare for the worst. It was a miracle you came through it. "

Gordon Meade, being an ER doctor, had begged that day to be allowed to scrub in for her surgery- if only to watch. He'd known Scarlett since she was a baby. He couldn't send her in there alone. When they cracked open her chest, he had to steady himself for what he saw. Her ribs were not just broken, they were crushed; piercing into both her lungs and heart. The internal bleeding alone was enough to kill her. They had to put her on bypass. He stood in the back of the operating room and prayed harder than he had ever prayed in his life.

When he walked into the waiting room filled with people to let them know that the baby had been delivered and was being rushed to the NICU, they all could see it in his face; the graveness of the situation. He clenched his jaw as he handed Rhett her wedding rings and earrings – the gold and precious stones not allowed in surgery.

" _I killed her_." he kept repeating. Melanie had been trying to comfort him, telling him that it was an accident, that he didn't kill her. That it was no one's fault. Gordon Meade, known to be one of the kindest and most empathetic doctors in Atlanta, simply glared at him.

"You know, Rhett, even if she makes it, which I honestly doubt she will, she'll never be the same. These injuries will follow her for the rest of her life."

"I want you to hear this and remember." He lowered himself to be near Rhett's ear. "You – and you alone, have destroyed her."

He squeezed her hand in support. "There are limits to what you can do. If you won't do it for yourself, do it for those kids. Where would they be without you?" She shook her head; she didn't even with to think about that. Gerry and Cat were still practically babies.

"I know. I will, Gordon. I'll do better. For them, I'll do whatever I need to do."

"Good girl. Now, Julia is going to come in and give you a shot of Ceftriaxone and I'm sending over a prescription for Rocephin. That should also help to increase your appetite. You need to gain weight. You barely meet the BMI index for a fourteen year old girl. Are you out of your Lisinopril?" She nodded. "I'm sending that over too. I want you to follow up with Dr. Fontaine in five days, understand?"

She smiled and thanked him as he gathered up his chart and papers.

"Gordon?" she stopped him." Was I brought here in an ambulance? Do you know what happened to my car?"

"No. Some man brought you in. "He flipped the papers on his clipboard. "A Phillipe Robillard? Said he was a friend of the family. He was behind you the entire time. Saw the whole thing. He's still out there in the waiting room. Do you want me to send him in?"

She leaned back against the raised part of the bed and took in a deep breath. "Yeah, you can send him in."


	24. Chapter 24

_Sorry for the long delay! WARNINGS BEWARE. Some M stuff is included. Just skip the last part if it's not you're sort of bag. Please, please, please comment. I live for it !_ -

 _Edited Thanks for the heads up Lor !_

"She thinks I'm a sex addict."

Rhett ran his finger along the thick piping of the plush, yellow armchair. He sat closer to Dilcey than her usually did. It felt different, being this close. Almost as if she was able to see deeper into his soul the closer she was in proximity. He walked in and settled into the creamy plushiness immediately; purposely avoiding the leather couch he usually occupied with Scarlett.

"Do you think you are?" Dilcey asked.

"Think I'm what?"

"A sex addict."

He shook his head no. Of course, he enjoyed sex, but he wasn't a sex addict.

He began to regret coming to see Dilcey on his own. The soothing sound of her voice was lulling him into a feeling of security. More than the fear of revealing too much to her, he was terrified of having to reveal it to himself. During their joint sessions with her, it was usually Scarlett who did most of the talking. Who knows what truths she would pull out of him while he was here on his own. " I don't know why I did what I did. I know that sounds like bullshit, Dilcey, but it's the truth."

Dilcey's placid face slightly nodded in understanding. " How old were you when your father kicked you out of the house, Rhett ?"

"Fourteen. Why?"

"Tell me about it."

"I don't see what that has to do with anything, Dilcey. I want my wife back. I want my family back. Why waste time on something that happened so long ago and is totally unrelated?"

"Which one of us is the professional, Rhett ?" Typically, she asked Scarlett this several times throughout their sessions.

Rhett took a deep breath and sat back into his chair. "What do you want to know?"

"Were you close to your father?"

Close to him ? Rhett hated him. Kin Butler was a hard man. Hard in business, hard on his wife, and hardest on his oldest son. " No, I wasn't close to my father at all."

"What happened on the day he threw you out?"

Rhett splayed his large, brown fingers out; inspecting the wrinkled and age spotted hands that were identical to his father's. Rhett didn't want to do this. He only started to coming to these independent sessions with Dilcey as a sort of " show" for Scarlett. A way to prove to her that he was actively trying to seek help. He did not want to drudge up old demons that were best kept hidden.

"He was hurting my mother and I tried to stop him." Rhett Butler had witnessed horrific tragedies in his sixty years on earth. He had dismissed many of them as a part of living. Everyone has their own struggles, right? But other than seeing his wife's broken body lying at the foot of the stairs, witnessing his father beating his mother was the most reprehensible sight he could not forget.

" How? How did you try to stop him?"

"I hit him with a hockey stick ." Rhett could remember the loud crack the solid wood made as it broke across his father's back. "It was the first time I ever stood up to him. He was stunned a little I think and stopped hitting my mother and turned his attention towards me. He beat the living hell out of me. He said I was dead to him and that I was no longer welcome in his house. He threw me out with the clothes on my back and nothing else. "

"What did your mother do when all this was happening?"

Rhett shrugged his broad shoulders. "What could she do? He would have killed her if she stepped in and tried to stop him."

" Did she try to reason with him once he calmed down? Did she try and make sure you were alright? You were a child living on the streets of South Carolina. She never once tried to make contact with you ? To check on you? See if you had food or shelter?"

Rhett's eyes were fixed downward as he answered. "I don't know. I tried a couple of times to talk to her - In secret , you know? When he wasn't around kind of stuff. She still wouldn't see me. I guess she was just too afraid."

Dilcey wrote something in her blue journal. " What did you do once you realized that she wouldn't help you?"

"I became very good at stealing what I needed. One night, I stole a lady's purse and found almost five hundred dollars in it. I bought a bus ticket to New Orleans, figuring that a thief without family, money, or a decent education could make it in a city like that. When I got there, I found the city ripe for the taking. The tourists were easy targets for a young, clean – cut kid like me. I made friends with the other punks in the quarter and they became my new family. After a few months, I met Belle. She was a back-alley prostitute back then and no stranger to life in the streets of the city. We hustled every poor sap we could. Belle would distract them while I lifted their wallets. We made a great team. She shared everything she had with me. She never left me. She loved me, and I knew I could always count on her."

Dilcey made a "mmm-hmm" sound to indicate her understanding. "Then what happened?"

"Belle was my savior- my best friend even, but I knew I wanted more out of life than the one I was living with her. I called my grandfather in Washington and he agreed to send me to school to finish my education. He hated my father more than I did and paid for me to go to a military boarding school in Virginia and then straight on to West Point. No one in my family would even speak to me. For years, every phone call I made was rejected and all my mail was returned unopened. Even my grandfather wouldn't truly acknowledge me; he never visited or invited me to spend my holidays and summers in Washington with him. He only sent money to pay the tuition and some pocket money. I was shocked when I found out that he left me everything when he died. Belle was a dancer in the quarter by then. She stood out amongst the other dancers with her fire-red hair and was making good money. We decided to pool our assets and open the first elite gentlemen's club in the Vieux Carre. I was the silent partner and financier and she ran the day to day stuff." Rhett smiled as he thought about those exciting days with Belle. Dilcey remained silent as he continued.

"I could tell she wanted me to marry her. But I couldn't. Call it arrogance or elitist, but I couldn't see her as my wife. So , I stayed in school determined to be proper gentleman and make my mother proud. And then, when I was thrown out of West Point for fighting in the middle of my senior year, I said a big "fuck you" to the Army and joined the Navy. I traveled all over the world and went home to Belle when I was on leave. It was all so fun and exciting. Once the Gulf War started, right before I shipped out for my first tour during Desert Storm, I tried to contact my mother again. I was scared I would die never hearing her voice again. She still wouldn't take my call. Wouldn't even let me talk to my little sister. " Rhett shook his head in defeat. " Belle came to see me ship off. She told me that she loved me and that I better come back safe to her if I knew what was good for me."

He smiled." I seem to surround myself with volatile women even then, you see."

Dilcey let out a little laugh at that.

"I moved up in the ranks quickly during the Gulf War. I was fearless. There wasn't anything I wouldn't do , no mission too dangerous. I made it to Captain in no time. I had all my pay sent back to Belle and she invested it in all kinds of things, playing in the stock market and international trade, making a lot of money. She's really smart, you know. Years later, when it came time to re-enlist, I decided it was time from the Navy. I starting investing more- opened my investment firm. I made my first ten million that first year. Belle came and tacked a dollar bill to my office wall. To remind me where it all began, she said. She had a baby by then, a boy – Taz, my now son-in-law. I knew he wasn't mine, but I loved spending time with him; bringing him little presents, teaching him about horses and taking care of him. I honestly thought about marrying her and adopting Taz. We'd be the perfect couple when you thought about it : the gambler and the prostitute turned madam."

"Why didn't you?" Dilcey asked as she held her pen steady on the paper in the journal.

" I was going to. Bought the ring and everything." Rhett took in a deep breath and leaned back in the chair.

"But..." Dilcey encouraged.

"I invested in a business venture with an old shipmate who lived in Atlanta – Frank Kennedy. I was going to get things off the ground with him and then ask Belle to marry me as soon as I returned to Louisiana. He had asked Sue to marry him and invited me to their engagement party that weekend. I went and then I met… "

"Scarlett"

"Yes." He closed his eyes remembering how he watched her ascend the staircase with her friend. So utterly beautiful. "From that moment on, I was a goner. She took my breath away. I loved her from the moment I laid eyes on her. I practically stalked her. I had to have her. I tried to be her friend at first then tried to convince her to be my mistress. You can imagine her reaction to that suggestion. She said she wanted **_nothing_** to do with me- slapped me right across the face. She must have called me every name in the book. She threatened to have me arrested, said she had a gun- and knew how to use it, that she would castrate me and put my balls on her office desk as a decoration…."

"And Belle? Where was she throughout your budding romance with Scarlett ?"

"Belle was still there. I told her that I couldn't marry her, that it wouldn't be right- but would always take care of her and Taz. She told me that she understood how I could be captivated by Scarlett, but that it would never work in the long run. Every time I was refused by Scarlett, and that was a lot, Belle was there in an instant. Salving my wounds, telling me she loved me and would never leave me. Then, things starting falling into place. My father died, and my mother began answering my letters – taking my calls. Scarlett filed for a divorce from Frank. She had another baby by then– Ella; and I adored her. I pretended that she and Wade were mine even. We started sleeping together and I knew my life would never be complete without her and convinced her to marry me."

"How did Belle take this?"

Rhett smoothed his mustache with his thumb and forefinger." Belle … Belle was….crushed. But she never left me. She was always there when I needed her."

Dilcey crossed her arms and pursed her lips together. " I see."

"What? You see what ?", Rhett asked her, suddenly irritated at what he perceived to be her sanctimonious attitude.

"You were abused and left homeless by your father at a very young age. The one person you thought you could count on, no matter what – the one who was supposed to love you completely, ignored you when you needed her the most. And when you were alone and scared, you were rescued by Belle. She was the one constant in your life, your family. When your mother left you out there on the streets alone - a cruel act of abandonment …."

"My mother is not cruel !"

"Rhett, I'm sorry, but leaving your teenaged son out on the streets, alone, homeless, and with no way of making it in the world, is worse than cruel. It's malicious. Refusing to see or speak to him each time he reaches out is emotional abuse. Shutting him out from his family, from any financial support is criminal. I ask you, Rhett; you've called Scarlett cruel on a number of occasions, as I recall. But you defend your mother against the same accusations. Do you think Scarlett would ever do something like this to any of your children? Say, when Wade gets engaged to a New Yorker? Or when Ella runs off and marries Belle's son? How about when Bonnie is caught with drugs? Your wife is someone you classify as being heartless and cruel. Would she turn a blind eye to her children's pleas for help?"

Rhett shook his head. "No, she'd never do that."

"You do have a fear of abandonment, Rhett – as we've discussed. When this fear surfaces and you're scared you'll be left again, you seek refuge in Belle or in women like her because it feels safe. It's what you know; your definition of comfort and real love. But your fears of abandonment aren't rooted in your relationship with Scarlett, or even with your father."

"They are, Dilcey. They've both broken me in more ways than one. My father beat me. He almost killed me. My wife was in love with someone else for half of our marriage. She still sees him every day. Calls him one of her best friends ! Tell me, who else could be the cause of what I feel, if not them?"

Dilcey placed the blue journal on the table beside her. She sat back and folded her hands in her lap. "I think it's time to be honest about your relationship with your mother."

STW

Scarlett shielded her eyes from the hot Georgia sun as she looked out at the massive heaps of lumber that had just been delivered. Her foreman, Johnny, was fast but not always precise. An order of this magnitude , and from the state no less, had to be done correctly. He had protested against her increased involvement, reminding her that she agreed to no questions and no interference in the way he got things done. She recounted with a new agreement, stating that no questions and no interference from her would also mean no paycheck.

" Is that the last of it ?", she called out to Johnny as he stood checking off items on his clipboard. He nodded. She could feel beads of sweat rolling down her spine. It was an unusually hot day considering they were in the month of November and she cursed her decision to wear silk.

"Why, hello there !" a voice called out to her from a distance.

Richard Fenton strode up to her wearing a yellow hard hat. Tufts of his blonde hair stuck out from underneath. His blue oxford shirt was rolled up to his elbows and open enough at the top to show the top of his smooth sternum. She felt butterflies floating around in her stomach as he walked closer. It unnerved her to feel an intense physical attraction for him. It almost was like the intense reaction she had that summer when Ashley turned from her playmate to the foremost object of her desire.

She smiled at Richard and felt her lashes flutter a bit. _Damn it, Scarlett O'Hara - you whore,_ she thought. She had flirted so much throughout her life, that it was almost as if it were now a natural physical reaction. Something she had no control over. Sort of like sneezing or coughing.

"I didn't think I'd find you here." His posh accent drove her crazy with lust. She could listen to him read her the phone book.

"Oh. I just came to check that the lumber was delivered on time. We pride ourselves on excellent customer service." More eyelash fluttering. This time accompanied by a dimpled smile.

"Well then, as a customer, I am highly satisfied".

He smelled delicious. A mix of the sweet smell of the cedar wood and musky aftershave. She breathed in large amounts of it until she felt dizzy. Very dizzy _. Shit !_ , she thought. When was the last time she ate? She **did not** want to pass out here.

"I do have a question for you though. Some of the wood looks a little different than I was expecting. It's smooth to the touch and a little green in color."

She smiled, gathered her bearings, and explained the milling process to him. "Yes, it's a higher quality softwood. Its meant to be mostly free of knots and other defects. It's stronger and dried to a specific temperature to keep out moisture and withstand the elements."

"Impressive. Tell me, how is it that you know so much about lumber?"

She shrugged one of her shoulders, unaware of the sexiness of the gesture. "I know business. And lumber is the product that I just so happen to produce in my business. So, I know lumber. If we made electrical outlets or boots, I'd know them."

She cursed herself for being so honest with him. She should have given him the response she always gave to her clients: _I do this because I feel passionate about producing high quality lumber that everyone can afford_. But she was tired of lying and pretending to be something she was not.

"I was just about to head out and get some dinner. " He tasted the American word for the evening meal on his tongue. "Care to join me?"

 _Say no, say no, say no ,_ she told herself.

"I'd love to."

She followed him to a sushi restaurant that she'd never seen before. Rhett wasn't a big fan of Japanese cuisine , so her experiences eating hibachi or sushi were limited to sporadic solo ventures. She surveyed her surroundings before placing her napkin in her lap. She half expected Rhett to rush in with accusations of infidelity on her part. Demanding to know why she was having dinner with another man. Either that, or India – or some other nosey bitch like her- sticking their nose in her business.

"Welcome back !" Their waiter, a balding man with a face full of wrinkles, said as he handed them menus and chopsticks. " Going exotic this time? Much improved if I may say so myself ", he said as he looked at Scarlett and winked in Richard's direction.

"You've eaten here before?" she asked while wiping her hands with the warm towel placed before her.

 _"_ Only once _._ I was on a first date. With a blonde. He was my waiter then too. He must think we're on a date."

"Were just friends" he told the jovial waiter.

She felt a pang of jealously at the thought of Richard on a date. She knew this was ridiculous and she had no right to feel this way, but still, she seethed inwardly at the fact that Richard was dating. She imagined some tawdry, big breasted blonde – ridiculously young and moronic.

"First and only date. I'm beginning to think finding love in one of those on-line dating sites might be a better option than what I've been doing."

"Oh" she said in her best attempt to appear nonchalant. "Are the women in Atlanta not to your liking?", she asked coquettishly while biting the tip of her straw in her water glass as she slowly sipped the liquid into her mouth. She noticed how Richard's eyes were focused on her mouth and made of show of stopping the flow of water from her straw with her tongue. He lifted his gaze from her mouth to her eyes. The low lighting made them sparkle a mossy green. "No, I like the women of Atlanta very much."

They ordered Miso soup, fried dumplings, spring rolls, two orders of crunchy rolls and something called the dragon's blood roll. She had never had miso and was apprehensive about the clear liquid that had been set before her. She found it to be delicious; and even with the bits of white tofu floating within, she began gulping it down in very unlady-like slurps. She couldn't remember the last time she had a proper meal and was reminded again of Gordon's admonishment at her lack of care for herself. She was going to eat everything on her plate and didn't care how it made her look.

She felt at ease with Richard. It was a sense of comfortableness that she craved now- more than ever. He made her laugh in the way that Rhett had done during the early days of their friendship. Their conversation flowed freely and had none of those awkward moments of silence that one often felt when conversing with someone new. They talked about their sons – how they were liking Kindergarten, crazy things they heard about dating websites, the beauty of amazon prime, how growing up in England was different than growing up in America, and their shared interest of one-liners from slap-stick comedies from years past.

"Dong, where is my automobile ?" she laughed.

"No, no, no. How about this one: Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit smoking!", he shot back.

"Looks like the I picked the wrong week to quit drinking." Scarlett knew the scenes in _Airplane_ by heart too. Rhett hated the film and would tell her that her brain was melting each time she watched it.

"Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit taking amphetamines !" Richard cantered.

"Looks like I picked the wrong week to stop sniffing glue!" she said as they both erupted into laughter. She snorted a little laugh as she grabbed at her left ribs. "Ow. My side hurts from laughing so much."

"I won't show you my truffle shuffle then."

She threw her head back in laughter again. People were staring at them, but she didn't care.

"Now you have to show me."

"Maybe. When you're ready."

Richard grabbed a chopsticks and used them to thwart Scarlett's attempts to take the last dumpling.

"You're going to have to fight me for it" he told her.

"Be careful", she said in a silky voice. "I fight dirty."

"Do you now?".

Their poorly disguised sexual banter was interrupted when the waiter appeared with rectangular plates balanced on his open palms. " Dragon's blood and crunchy rolls?"

They moved back to allow their plates to be set down before them. Scarlett watched as Richard placed a roll in is mouth. "Wow. That's hot." He said as he blew out a puff of breath and reached for his water.

"Yeah, I figured it would be - seeing as it is named **_dragon's_** blood. That's why I stuck to something I knew." She shifting the roll in her mouth to the side as she spoke in her best Valley girl accent, " Do you want one of mine "?

She moved a roll toward him before noticing that he didn't reach to grab it with his chopsticks but rather leaned forward with his mouth slightly open. She felt the blush rising in her cheeks as she placed the sushi into his mouth with her own chopsticks. He made a _mmmm_ sound as he savored the sticky rice covered in tempura flakes.

" Okay, here's a serious question for you", he said, licking the last bits of the golden flakes that had stuck to the corner of his mouth.

She wondered if he felt the tension between them or noticed her flushed face. She could feel her pulse quickening in anticipation at what he was about to ask her. Would it be: Can I kiss you? Come home with me? Do you want me as much as I want you?

"You are stuck on a deserted island. What is the one luxury item you have with you?"

"Can it be anything?"

"Yes. Anything. But only one."

She thought for a moment. One thing? Could she even pinpoint one singular item she couldn't live without?

When she thought about it, the saddest thing during her twenty yearlong marriage to Rhett wasn't all the times he cheated or even the loss of their baby. It was, that in those years, Scarlett forgot who she was. Little by little, her own sense of self was whittled away to nothing. When Rhett asked her to marry him, she had told him that she did not love him and that she didn't want to ever get married again. Married life with Frank had been **THAT** terrible. He seemed unfazed by her honest declaration and told her that he did not love her either, but that marrying him would be fun. He wore her down -begging, pleading, and even threatening her until she said yes.

And it was fun. At first. He denied her nothing in those early days and spoiled her with the most beautiful clothes and expensive jewelry imaginable- any frivolous request was granted. He told her that she could be honest with him; that he'd always be there to protect her. He made her laugh constantly and told her the most risqué tales that made her both embarrassed and thrilled. She felt safe and for the first time in her life, she shared her dreams, her fears, how she felt so lost when her mother died, her reasons for her hatred of Frank, the details of her childhood, how she found out that Gerald wasn't her biological father. But when she was honest to him about Ashley, saying that her feelings for him were complicated, he would fly off the handle and berate her, calling her the worst names and damn her cheating soul to hell. He'd leave for days at a time in a fit of anger and then would suddenly appear out of nowhere with roses; sweeping her up in his arms and carrying her to their bedroom where he would make passionate love to her for hours as if nothing had ever happened.

He'd say the meanest things to her – provoke her anger only to laugh at her, as if it were fun for him or some type of foreplay; silencing her venomous retort by raining kisses down the length of her body. It was confusing to her - how he would show how much he cared in the little things he did ; especially when she was pregnant with Bonnie. She was furious when she found out and told him that she didn't want any more children and that this was his fault for convincing her to use the withdrawal method as birth control. He laughed at her and sat there, saying that no one put a gun to her head and forced her to agree to it and told her that if she didn't want the baby she should just give it to Melanie since she was the only real mother figure to Wade and Ella anyway. It was during those nine months that things were changing between them. She felt that their marriage was shifting (in a good way) and that she was possibly falling in love with her husband. He was so wonderful to her and so good to Wade and Ella.

She gathered the nerve to ask him one night if the reason he was so good to them was because he loved her. She was leaning against his chest as he rubbed the taut skin on her swollen belly with cocoa butter. He was silent for a moment .

Instead of answering her, he asked the same question to her. "Do **_you_** love me ?"

She turned her head to look at his face. For some reason she felt as though she were going to cry. The only man who had ever told her that he loved her, one that she really believed to be true to his word, was her father. Not Ashley, or Charlie, and certainly not Frank. If Rhett loved her – truly and completely loved her in that delicate way between a man and a woman, he'd be the first.

" I…. I don't know what I feel, Rhett. I'm so confused."

His face became hard as he let out a rumble of laughter in his chest. He moved his hands away from her distended belly. " No, my pet. I don't love you. It's just that I've invested quite a bit of money in you and I'd hate to lose it."

She then realized, after Bonnie was born and during the nightmare of years that followed, that the only method of cultivating a harmonious life with her husband was to be whatever it was that he wanted her to be in that moment. He called her ignorant, so she secretly took online courses in history and science. He made fun of her taste in clothes and architecture, so she hired a personal shopper and an interior designer. He called her a bad mother, so she tried her hardest to relate to her children; especially Ella – who tried her patience more than her brother and sister combined. And then when he left her- broken, alone, and despondent after her baby and best friend died, despite all the changes to her person she had tried to make, the remaining confidence she had in who she was had vanished. She begged him to stay; something she said she would never do for any man. She pleaded with him to give their life together a second chance, declared her love to him while literally clinging to his feet. And all her told her as he walked out of their front door, was that he didn't want a second chance with her and that he didn't give a damn about what she did with the remainder of her life as long as it didn't involve him.

The one thing she wanted, more than anything, was to go back and change things, to find herself again. To right so many of her wrongs.

"A Tardis. I'd bring a Tardis."

Richard put down his chopsticks in awe. " **That** is the most brilliant answer ever."

STW

She drove home feeling a little lightheaded – happy even. She had thoroughly enjoyed her dinner with Richard. He'd insisted that he pay for the meal. "Even thought this isn't a date", he'd said to her with a wink. He walked her out to her car and then lingered a little before saying goodbye. Scarlett kissed him on his cheek and thanked him for a wonderful evening. In that single second, when her lips touched his face, she felt a tingling sensation go down her spine. Could she honestly be falling for this guy? Was this for real? No, she assured herself. She was just riding the wave of receiving admiration from a handsome, virile male after being deceived by her husband. Typically story: wife of cheating husband looks for hot guys as some sort of revenge- was all that it was.

But, one thing was for sure. She was enjoying the hell out of it.

She could hear the high pitched squeals of Gerry as soon as she walked in the door of her house. " Mommy, Grand-père is ticklin' me to death!"

She smiled as she walked toward her father and son. "Let me get some tickles in there too, Phillipe!" Gerry's face was red with silent laughter. " 'Nough! 'nough! ", he yelled. Scarlett pulled her son into her arms and squeezed him in a tight hug. Rhett must have dropped the kids off while she was gone. Thank God.

"I missed you, Tootsie. Did you have fun with Daddy?"

"Yes." He said as he wiggled out of her embrace. He emptied out the contents of his pockets onto the plush foot cushion near the fireplace for his grandfather to see. A grandpa who actually talked and walked was an exciting novelty to him. Scarlett moved to sit next to Cat who was seated on the sofa at the far side of the room. Cat picked at her cuticles as she rocked slightly back and forth- clearly upset.

"Hi, Kitty Cat. I missed you. Shake hands?"

"Cat doesn't want to do that anymore. Cat won't go back."

" Cat ", Scarlett began to speak but was cut off by Cat's raised voice and increased rocking. " Cat does not want to go back!"

"Okay. We'll figure something out". Scarlett said while running her finger tips along Cat's arm. It had to be something serious that happened. Cat speaking in third person was never a good sign. When she began to settle down, Scarlett asked her if she wanted to go brush the mane of her horse. Cat nodded without looking at her mother and stared forward. Aggie, their oldest mare, had undoubtably become Cat's horse. The two were inseparable. The sudden changes happening at home were completely overwhelming to her and Aggie seemed to be the one who helped Cat the best.

Scarlett called out to Lou; their long-time, disgruntled nanny, and asked her to walk Cat to the stables.

Lou glared at Phillipe as she walked past him. It was no secret that she hated him. She called him " _Scheisse_ " (Shit) instead of by his name and told Scarlett that she thought that she was mad for letting him stay here. "Biological father , or not" , she'd said.

Since Mammy had died and Rhett had moved out, Lou had become her most trusted ally. She took to the role with gusto, relishing the opportunities to give her opinion and rule the house with more force than she had before. She had disagreed with Scarlett's decision to inform the children that Phillipe was their biological grandfather and was adamantly against her allowing him to live in her home while he was in America. Her tyrannical manner had thrown the balance of things off with the staff, causing even sweet Mrs. Fritz to bristle and shout at Lou that she was nothing more than a new version of Hitler.

 _"Katharina, komm, meine Liebe_ " , Lou said to Cat in her native, German tongue. Scarlett held on to Cat's hand with both of hers as she rose to follow Lou. "I love you, Kitty Cat."

Cat _almost_ smiled at her. " _Ich liebe dich auch, Mama_." German. Her home was becoming the United Nations. English, German, Gaelic, French, and even Bonnie's mangled Spanish were spoken here on a daily basis.

"What was that about " , she asked Phillipe once Cat left the room. "Did something happen when Rhett dropped them off?"

Phillipe said no, that everything was fine when he dropped them off. Rhett had come in, shook his hand, and said that it was a pleasure to finally meet him. That the kids came tumbling in, dispersing into various areas of the house. Nothing to warrant any concern.

Scarlett called out for Bonnie who took her own, sweet time to appear; shuffling slowly down the stairs with her eyes glued to her phone. "Did anything happen with Daddy to make your sister so upset ", Scarlett asked upon her descent.

"Hello to you too, mama."

"Hello, sweetheart." She then repeated her question. " Did something happen with Daddy to make your sister so upset?"

Bonnie's faced looked pinched. She debated telling her mother what had happened this weekend. She knew her mother would be livid and that it would escalate into a huge fight between her parents. But she also didn't want Cat to have to suffer each time they visited their dad either. She had to tell her.

"It's the bedsheets. Cat hated them. She said they're itchy and she that she won't sleep on them. She threw a **huge** fit and starting screaming at Dad. Then she starting tearing the room apart, making Gerry cry and starting hitting herself in the head with her fists. Dad was really pissed and grabbed her by her arm and pushed her in her room and locked her in."

"He what ?!"

"When she calmed down a little, he told her that he wouldn't put up with her ridiculous demands and that she might be able to pull this kind of crap with you, but not with him. And then he…."

"He what ! What did he do, Bonnie !"

"He punished her for the whole weekend."

Without listening to any further details, Scarlett grabbed her keys and barreled through to the garage, calling out to the man who was in the middle of detailing her tires to "Start my car and move out of the way." She peeled out onto the asphalt of the highway, barely stopping for red lights and stop signs. She was in downtown Atlanta in record time. She parked her car in front of Rhett's apartment building, ignoring the bellman's cries of ," Lady, you can't park here!"

"Then FUCKING tow it!" she screamed back at him.

Rhett sat sipping his whiskey and relishing the peaceful silence after spending two whole days with the constant noise that came with his children. A cigar dangled in his hand, billowing the sweet smoke around the room.

THUMP THUMP THUMP

It sounded as though the police were outside his door with a battering ram.

THUMP THUMP THUMP

"What the hell?", he said as he went to open the door. Thank heaven he lived in the penthouse and secluded from the other tenants. If it wasn't already the police out there, they would have surely been called at the sound of banging, had he neighbors.

It wasn't the police out there. It was worse.

"You!"

Scarlett. She must have been out there kicking the door with everything she had in her. He felt his breath catch at the sight of her. He hadn't seen her in almost two weeks and was almost crazy with longing. She was gorgeous : gorgeously infuriated, his favorite type of gorgeous – her cheeks flushed a deep pink, her lips full and red, and her green eyes blazing with fire. Her hair was a wild mess of curls that fell across her shoulders and framed her beautiful porcelain face. He watched as she took in huge gulps of air; her breasts visibly rising and falling each time.

Here she was, his beautiful wife, so deliciously furious. He acted without thinking as he cupped the back of her neck and pulled her toward him and kissed her. Immediately, she wrapped her arms around him, tangling her long fingers in is hair as she kissed him back; meeting his tongue with her own. He lifted her into his arms, feeling her trembling legs cling tightly around his waist. He kissed her throat and collar bone as she offered her neck to him. She almost ripped the buttons off her Armani blouse as she peeled the silk fabric away to allow him better access to her breasts; unfastening her lace bra with one hand as he gently grazed her hardened nipples with his teeth and tongue. He balanced her rear on his forearm, cupping the luscious curves of her bottom with one hand as he yanked open his trousers with the other. Kicking the door closed and pressing her forcefully against the cool industrial steel, he lifted her skirt – tearing off her panties, and entered her in one, swift move. They both stilled for a moment, her head had fallen back against the wall as they both relished the familiar sensation of deeply filing each other after so long an absence. He began thrusting into her in reckless, frenzied movements that she desperately tried to keep up with by arching her back and crashing her hips back into him. When her release finally came, it was so intense that she bit down on her bottom lip with such force that she tasted blood. She relaxed her exhausted body against Rhett's chest until he too was at rest, finishing with her name being said through his clenched teeth. Once their breathing returned to a semblance of normalcy , he gently lowered her shaking body to solid ground. He held her in his arms for a while, and then kissed her bruised, swollen lips.

"Get off of me." She pushed herself out of his arms.

Rhett turned toward her, puzzled by her capricious change in attitude. "What? That was amazing, and you know it."

"That was not what I came here for, you animal !", she said while rebuttoning her blouse and adjusting her skirt. Her panties were unsalvageable and would need to be thrown away.

"We were both animals just then." He smiled at her, baring his white teeth. "Why did you come then, if not for that? Admit it, you wanted me."

"You conceited nature never fails to amaze me.

I'm here because you punished Cat for the whole weekend because she had an episode. What the hell, Rhett! She's autistic. This happens sometimes when she gets upset. This is not her fault- and you know this! So, she didn't like the feel of the bedsheets. So what ? Buy some fucking new ones for her bed! "

Rhett locked the door and pulled his trousers up but left his shirt unbuttoned. Scarlett was aghast at the fact that they just had sex with the front door unlocked. She closed her eyes in mortification as she remembered that she was essentially topless in the hallway near they the elevator too. Surely this building had security cameras, and this was all recorded for all to see. Great. Now she had a sex tape out there.

" No, it wasn't just an episode, Scarlett. She tore this whole damn place apart. Look around." He gestured to the ramshackled apartment. There were broken items swept into numerous piles across the wood floor. " The sheets were only part of it. She was off from the moment she got here. She hated everything – the couch, the view, the smell, the food, the lighting. She was totally out of control. She was screaming and breaking things and even started hurting herself. I was so afraid she'd do something like jump off the balcony or run out into traffic, so I locked her in her room until she calmed down. You and I both know how she likes clear-cut rules and explicit directions, so when she asked me why she had to stay in the room , I told her it was because she was punished."

"Then why didn't you call me?"

"And tell you what ? That I can't handle my own children?"

Scarlett placed her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes at him as if to call him out. "Well, you obviously cannot."

Rhett brows furrowed. He pointed his finger at his wife as he spoke . "You know what , Scarlett? She plays you like a fool. She knows you'll give her anything when she gets upset, so she acts like this to get her way. She knows mama will just rush right in and save the day. Just like you're doing now."

Scarlett stood motionless. Her mouth was open to speak, but no sound came out.

"What ? You know I'm right, Scarlett."

"No, I'm just wondering if you've always been this ignorant or if this overwhelming stupidity you seem to possess is just a result of your old age."

They both turned at the sound of a key being placed in the door lock. Rhett heard Scarlett gasp as Belle walked in with her arms full of groceries. "Hey babe, can you give me a hand", she asked from behind the brown paper bags.

"Scarlett, this isn't what it looks like ", he said as he saw Scarlett's eyes open wide in shock.

She looked back at him and curled her top lip in disgust. "Why am I not surprised? You make me sick, Rhett Butler. Physically sick."

She turned toward Belle. "I'd give him some time before you need him to get it up again, Belle. He just screwed me right where you're standing not even ten minutes ago."

She crossed her hands over her heart as she spoke," I hereby give you both my blessing for a happy, disease -filled life together. He's all yours, Belle. Please, feel free to enjoy my sloppy seconds - you fat, fucking cunt."


	25. Chapter 25

"Your honor, my clients did not place Ms. McDaniel under any duress in the establishment of her will and named beneficiaries. She was of sound mind and judgement and acted according to her own free will. The claims made by Mr. McDaniel are completely false and unsubstantiated."

Poor Scarlett. Brent Tarleton watched with sincere sympathy as his wife and her two sisters sat side by side in probate court. Careen turned a gave him a little smile. She must have felt his eyes on her. Brent smiled back at her and gave her a little wink. He thanked the Lord that she was in good spirits today. She hadn't been herself since they lost their baby. Their last viable embryo. Somehow, it was easier for him to handle to disappointment if he thought of their baby by the scientific name given. It was different for Careen, who had carried that tiny life inside her.

Out of the three of them, the O'Hara sisters, Scarlett looked the most pitiful. Pitiful and beautiful. Brent conceded that she was still the most beautiful of the three. He didn't think this as a betrayal to is wife. He was simply stating a fact. Even Will would agree. Now that they were all aware of her distinguished French pedigree, it made sense as to why her features were more striking than those of her sisters. But aside from being the most beautiful, she was also the unhappiest. It was almost as though she made a deal with God before she was born – an over abundant amount of physical beauty for an over abundant amount of emotional ugliness. And so she sat, flanked by her sisters, looking as beautiful as ever, and crumbling inside. Brent could read her like a book. He'd been able to for years.

Once upon a time, when they were both existing in that magical time before adult cares and worries tore away the twilight of youth; she was a mystery- an enchanting, ethereal creature that had both he and his twin brother, Stuart captivated. The three of them lived in a charmed world where falling in love with the same girl was no big deal. She flirted with them both, Stu and he - equally allowing them to steal kisses and fondle her growing breasts after sneaking out for a midnight swim in the Wilkes' swimming pool. She had lead them along, both like eager puppies on silk leashes for years.

But she was also their friend. She could ride, and smoke, and drink, and play cards with the best of them. She was mischievous and daring , exciting, and most of all – irresistible. Time was sweet back then. Back then, when he was a whole person.

He didn't consider himself whole now. He was only half a person; existing on only the left over, meager portions that made up a man. The other half of him died years ago- along with Stuart. It was Brent's parting gift to him. He handed it over to his brother the day that they closed his coffin and lowered him into the red earth of Georgia. Losing Stu had almost killed him. He wanted it to kill him. He willed it. Identical twins were intertwined from the beginning. They shared the same DNA. Separating them , whether in death or in life, was cruel and inhumane. They should have let him die at the hospital that night. He cursed the doctors that were able to save him and not his brother. They were monsters to him, monsters disguised as angels of mercy.

Dilcey had called it survivor's guilt. Pain brought on by an unreasonable sense of guilt that Stu had died in that car accident instead of him. Brent vehemently disagreed with this. If it were guilt, wouldn't it dissipate over time?

No, it wasn't guilt. It was an abrupt severing of one's person. Ripping it apart, piece by piece, muscle by muscle, bone by bone. He had tried to fill that missing half with drugs. Shooting up so much heroin that his veins looked as though they would burst. He went in and out of rehab and jail; chasing after the angel of death in hopes of being reunited with his twin. He was on the road to destruction- and he didn't care. It was a road he had placed himself on. A road he wanted to be on. Carreen had been his only obstacle. She had been his most vociferous supporter. She loved him – broken and all. A part of Brent wanted to live – for her. A tiny part of him that he reasoned wasn't good enough for her. She had refused to give up on him until it was quite clear that he was trying to kill himself through a long process of personal torment.

"Do you think this is what Stu would have wanted? To see you destroy yourself ? You say you were connected , that you lost half of yourself when he died. But doesn't that mean that half of him is in you too? The half that's left ? How is what you're doing fair to him ? I'm sorry Brent, but I'm not going to watch you die. I love you too much to do that." She had said those words to him the last time he had OD'd. He remembered the tears in her eyes as she stood and walked away from his hospital bed.

It was she that had saved him. It was her love for him, her unending faith, her support, and final letting go that drew him away from the nothingness that heroin and meth blessedly gave him. He got better... for her. To be the man she deserved him to be. He was here in this rank and stifling court room for her.

Brent and Will sat side by side- both acting as support beams for their respective wives. Will for Sue as she writhed in the agony of first trimester morning sickness and he for Carreen as she tried to be brave. Yet, no one was there for Scarlett. Rhett had not come. Brent was disappointed at this, but Will was enraged. He saw Scarlett as a sister and could not fathom how Rhett would allow her to be alone today. Separation or not.

The three men had been friends and allies for years and Rhett's absence was causing a rift in their comradery. The men had a sense of connectedness that no one who wasn't married to an O' Hara woman could understand. They were a team. Brent would never have guessed that it would have come to this between Scarlett and Rhett. They seemed so happy just a few months ago.

The three couples spent a week in Antigua together. Seven days filled with decadent wine, delicious food, white sandy beaches, no work and no kids. Careen had just found out she was pregnant and was radiant. She and Brent walked along the beach in the morning, hand in hand, discussing their little miracle baby. Will had brought along some very potent reefer and existed in a haze of good-feelings. Scarlett and Rhett spent the entire time either in competition (who was the fastest swimmer, who could find the perfect scallops for dinner, who was smarter…. you name it ) or laughing, or ….. And it was paradise.

The night before they left, they lounged around the fire pit on the back terrace getting deliciously drunk on prosecco and rum. Careen was the only sober one ; strictly sticking to her sparkling water. They had just announced that they were having a baby and were celebrating. Scarlett and Sue were falling over themselves in a fit of laughter as they attempted to do the boot-scooting boogie. Careen was filming them with her phone- laughing with tears in her eyes.

"Brent, can I ask you a question?" The way Will had said it, "ask " sounded like "axe".

"Shoot"

"Are ya' red…. ** _everywhere_** ….? Cause Sue's sorta red-headed too , and she ain't red all over, if ya' catch ma drift"

Brent laughed and shook his head. He looked at Rhett who choked a little on his cigar. " I guess it's saying something when questions like that no longer phase me.

"Yep. Red all over, Will."

"So, I'ma guess that the redder the hair on the head, the redder the "carpet"… ya' know… downstairs... is. "

"Probably so. As the saying goes: you know the real hair color of a person by checking to see if the carpet matches the drapes."

Rhett glanced over at his wife. She was busy trying to wrestle the phone docked to the speakers away from her. "It's my turn to pick a song!", he'd heard her say. Suellen pushed her away. " I'm tired of Madonna!" Scarlett reeled back with force. "I should have drowned you when you were born!"

What vacation would be complete without at least one physical altercation between the two sisters.

"I wonder if it all goes grey as you get older?" Brent emphasized the word older and looked over at Rhett.

"Sorry fellas. I won't be showing you my ball-hair this evening", he laughed.

"Ima take a good guess an say that the hair down there is as grey as it is on ya' head." Will loudly cleared his throat and nodded in Scarlett's direction.' Tell us Rhett, is Scar's hair really that black? Sue says she's all grey without hair dye. Does uh….the carpet match ….?"

Rhett smiled. " I wouldn't know. She's always coloring it. It doesn't have the chance to go grey. And I couldn't tell you about the carpet either as my wife has _no_ carpet and hasn't had it … _installed_ ….for years and years. Bare floors, gentlemen. Bare floors."

They must have louder than they thought. Brent glanced over his shoulder and saw the three sisters glaring at them.

"Rhett!" Scarlett had rushed up to him and covered his mouth with her hand. "You can't tell people that!"

She was giggling as he pulled her into his lap. They were all in hysterics. "What? I was just regaling my brothers- in-law with your impeccable taste in flooring."

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "You mean, YOUR impeccable taste in my flooring." She kissed him, open mouthed - right there in front of them all – long and intense. She was wasted.

"Take me to bed, old man.", was the last thing they heard her say before she was swept up in her husband's arms and whisked into the privacy of their suite. They were all too drunk to comment on the passionate cries they heard filtering through their open second story balcony doors.

They were crazy about each other. Brent was sure of it. To love each other with so much intensity just months ago and to now be so estranged was unfathomable to him.

Scarlett glanced toward Michael and began to wish she and her sisters had taken the deal offered by his attorney: Settle by giving Michael 75% of Mammy's estate and avoid the case being brought public. Scarlett had adamantly refused , saying that by doing this would be akin to admitting wrongdoing. Now she wondered if they had made the right decision. The case was now made public and had been twisted by the media into something much more dramatic than it was. And because the claims made by Michael were accusations of racism and, as was so eloquently printed in the _Atlanta Journal-Constitution:_ modern day slavery, protestors were there to greet them upon arrival with posters and angry chants about their person. The three women had entered the courthouse amidst reporters thrusting microphones in their faces- Scarlett's especially, and asking if they stole money from their life-long care giver and if they were racists. Scarlett ignored the obscenities yelled at her; only flinching once when a protester threw something at her.

"Your honor, I object. The mental state of Ms. McDaniel has not been assessed by a proper licensed professional. Mr. Hamilton's claims of mental clarity are mere conjectures."

Henry Hamilton pulled at the French cuffs of his shirt sleeves. Michael's representation was good. Very good. Henry wondered how he afforded such high profile legal counsel. If he had the money to retain James Lawe and associates, not to mention have James Lawe himself represent him, he obviously was in no need of Mammy's money. Something didn't make sense.

"Sustained."

Judge Carlson was going to let this go to trial. Henry knew it. He wasn't going to do any favors for the O' Hara sisters. Scarlett alone had been the bane of his existence for years . How many times had she stood before him as a teenager and heard him say, " You are not above the law Miss O' Hara."

"Fuck", he mumbled under his breath as Carlson did just that; setting the trial date to begin in three months' time.

STW

Her phone dinged that familiar sound that it has when a text comes through. She contemplated ignoring it. She refused to look at her phone and moved away from her purse. She could see her driver, Milo , glancing back at her in the rearview mirror. "You okay back there, Boss?"

"I'm fine, Milo."

She reasoned that the text might be about one of her kids. She'd left them at home with Phillipe today. While it was really Lou that looked after them, her children had warmed up considerably and were happy to have him there when they returned from school. Lou, not so much.

It was Rhett.

Everything went okay today? Thinking of you. Please call me

Thinking of her? How sweet he was to think of his darling wife while living openly with his whore. She typed in a quick response. She was too tired to fight with him.

Going to trial. Court date in 3 months. Can't talk now.

He did not respond back. Her thumbs hoovered over her phone. More than anything, she wanted to text him that she needed him; to tell him to please come home. She just wanted to crawl in his lap and be held- to be told that everything would be okay. She fought this temptation and turned the phone on silent and placed it in her purse.

As the front gate of her estate came into view, she felt as though she would be sick. She was beginning to hate her home. Not the people in it- just the house itself. If homes are the keepers of secrets, then her house was Pandora's box. It held so many secrets within its gilded walls. Painful secrets she no longer wanted to be reminded of. She was honestly thinking about selling it. It was a thought that once would never have taken up residence in her head. She began to contemplate how much the mansion had increased in value and how much of a return she would get after splitting it in half with Rhett. It saddened her, to the point of unexplainable sorrow, that she was beginning to think as though she and Rhett would never reconcile. She no longer saw them as a unit : Scarlett and Rhett – The Butlers. They were now separate. Scarlett. Rhett.

Forest's giant body was there as soon as she walked in. At the sound of keys in the lock, he was at the door in a second, eager to greet her. His massive head blocked her entry into the foyer of the grand home.

"Forest, move." Her voice was soft and defeated. She didn't have the energy to yell at the dog. It wasn't as if he listened to her when she did that anyway. He was the most unruly and frustrating of a breed famous for helping to find and save the lost and injured.

She slid into the house, squeezing her body in between the small space in the doorway between the dog and the door. Forest began circling around her in frenzied, panting movements that left tufts of white dog hair along the bottom of her skirt. She sat in the nearest chair - the rare Louis XV Carved Fauteuils a la Reine. The chair and its identical twin had cost them over sixteen thousands dollars and were so beautiful that Scarlett never allowed them to be casually used. But now, she simply didn't care. What was so special about them anyway? Weren't they just wood, gilt, and fabric? What did it matter. Things are worthless. She was being forced to accept this a little more each day.

"Madam, I'm sorry I was not here to receive you. The front entrance is so rarely used."

She smiled and waved her hand to tell him that it was not a big deal or any kind of inconvenience for her to open the door for herself.

"Shall I inform Mrs. Fitzsimmons and ask her to bring you a cup of tea?"

Tea? She'd prefer a giant glass of brandy. "Yes, Claude. That would be lovely. Thank you. "

Forest laid his bulbus face in her lap and looked up at her with his giant eyes. Scarlett began to pet him; stroking his head and silky ears. Unequivocally , Forest was still a nuisance. But since Rhett had left, he had become an unexpected source of comfort to her. She had even welcomed him into her bed in the last few days. The warmth of his behemoth body made it easier to sleep in a bed she shared with her husband for almost two decades. Nightly, after the kids were in bed and she had enjoyed her nightcap of brandy, she'd call out to him, "C'mon Forest, let's go to bed". He'd instinctively trudge up the stairs with her – slapping his tail against the marble railing as they collectively made their way to her bedroom. There, in the privacy of her bedroom, she snuggled up to the animal, oftentimes crying into his soft fur until she fell asleep.

"Let's go find the kids. It's too quiet in here and that's never a good sign."

She followed the high pitched sounds of young female voices, stopping momentarily to kiss her son and shake hands with her daughter. Bonnie and Ella were holed up in her ensuite, pawing her cosmetics and hair products. Poor Amiee was trapped between them and was being used as their real-life doll. Her face was covered in plaster-like foundation in a shade that was far too light for her. Her eyes, cheeks, and lips were painted garish bold colors.

"What are you two doing to this poor girl?". She walked toward them to inspect the status of her make-up.

Ella never showed any interest in her mother's extended morning facial regimen. She liked to keep it simple. A little powder and a quick swipe of gloss was her routine. Bonnie, on the other hand, couldn't be kept away from the endless beauty products that lined her mother's vanity. They had the same skin tone- the same face actually, so the items that enhanced her mother's exotic beauty did the same for her. Scarlett had begun buying duplicates of the products she used with hopes that Bonnie would leave hers alone until Rhett showed rare a disciplinary action and told Bonnie that she was too young to be , in his words, " all painted up".

Bonnie was leaning down into the girl's face, puckering her own lips as she drew on Amiee's mouth with a red Dior lip liner.

" We're trying out looks for the wedding. Aimee knows _nothing_ about make-up."

"Well, Aimee must love your brother quite a lot to let you do this to her."

Aimee met Scarlett's eyes in the mirror. " I hope you don't mind us using your bathroom. **_These two_** said that it was okay." Scarlett smiled. The three of them really were getting along so well. Aimee had fit right in. She felt a sad pang when she thought of her own sisters in law. She supposed that divorcing Rhett would mean divorcing them too.

Ella looked a little crestfallen. With all the drama recently hurled at Scarlett, she had been lacking in helping plan her own daughter's Big Day. The weight of the guilt piled onto the other items placed on her petite shoulders. "It's fine, Aimee. Ella, I think it's about time to be sending out your save-the-dates for your wedding. Have you given any thoughts about the design?"

"Not really"

Scarlett continued to try and draw her daughter out. Ella's despondency crushed her" It could be as simple or elaborate as you want. We could look over some ideas tonight if Taz isn't expecting you home early." Ella gave her a big smile. "Could we , mama? But only if you're up to it, though. Taz is watching the game tonight and if I have to hear him scream 'WHO DAT!' once more, I'll scream."

Bonnie stood up, temporarily removing herself from Aimee's personal space. " I want to help too !"

"Bonnie, this is your sister's wedding. You are a participant, not the bride", her mother admonished.

"Whatever". It was her favorite turn of phrase. Everything was – 'whatever'. Scarlett didn't mind it. I reminded her that Bonnie was still young and wouldn't be leaving home for a few years at least.

"When _I'm_ getting married, I want my save the date cards to be embossed with gold and silver filigree that surrounds our initials and the wedding date. And I was thinking about having some white or pink rose petals be placed inside the envelope so that when people open it, they'll fall out and release their scent."

Scarlett smile as she suppressed a giggle. " That sounds beautiful, honey…. And expensive."

"Hopefully you'll marry someone rich enough to support your spoiled little ass. Some nice guy who works… say…. in a **_family owned business_** just won't do." Ella said as she applied rose pink blush onto Aimee's cheeks. Aimee was beginning to look like a cross between a contestant on Ru Paul's Drag Race and the babies on Toddlers and Tiaras. Bonnie glared at her sister and mouthed at her to 'shut the fuck up'. How Ella had found out about her and Beau, she hadn't a clue.

Scarlett sat on the plush armchair near the girls and removed her shoes. Aimee eyed the peach Manolo Blahnik pumps appreciatively "Aimee, your parents are more than welcome to join us for Thanksgiving."

Aimee sheepishly looked at her future mother -in-law. She was so ashamed about how her mother had treated her. "Thank you, but they're going to my grandparents' in Nantucket."

Scarlett inwardly sighed in relief.

"Ella, what time are you going to your fathers' on Thanksgiving ? Oh, and before I forget, Bonnie, your father is coming to pick you, Cat, and Gerry up that evening to have a small dinner with him on Thanksgiving." Her daughter's looked at each other. There was something they were hiding from their mother.

"What? What aren't you two telling me ?"

Ella went first. "I'm not going to Dad's this year. They're eating at Aunt Pitty's with Uncle Ashley and Beau at the same time we're eating here. So, we'll just stop by for a quick visit in the afternoon."

"Can I come with you?" Bonnie asked.

"No, your Father is picking you up to having dinner with him, Bonnie. Besides, I'm sure Taz would want to go and visit his mother that day as well. They can't be toting you around too."

"Um, we're not going to make it to Taz's mom's house on Thanksgiving either. We'll stop and see her on another day."

"And I've decided that I'm not going to Dad's either. I want to spend it with you. Besides, he had us all for Halloween." Bonnie added in defiance.

Scarlett glance over at Aimee who was trying desperately to not appear to be listening. "Aimee, would you give us a minute?" Scarlett noticed how relieved she looked to be escaping the clutches of her two future sisters in law.

"What's all this about" , she said to her daughters as Aimee closed the bedroom door behind her. " Why don't either of you want to see your fathers for Thanksgiving?"

The sisters considered their responses. Their mother was no fool. They both had to be on their game if they wanted to pull one over on their mother. The truth was that Bonnie's father and Ella's mother-in-law would be spending the holiday together. They knew, despite what their mother would say, that it would rip out her heart to see them spend it with them.

Scarlett never spoke of her confrontation with Belle and Rhett. But still, her children could tell that something was wrong. When she came home that night Bonnie didn't dare ask her mother how it went. She could see it in her face. Her eyes were red and puffy, streaks of mascara ran along the curves of her cheeks, and her nose was an angry red- raw from repeated wiping. She kissed her children good night and closed herself in her bedroom. Bonnie anxiously called Ella- who then found out from her husband what had happened. They contemplated how best to handle the situation in whispers.

 _"I can hear her through the walls. She's sobbing, Ella. Like, just not crying, but sobbing. I don't know what to do."_

 _"No offense, Bonnie, but I fucking hate your father."_

 _"Right now, I hate him too."_

"Girls, I love that you both feel the need to protect me and stand by my side throughout all the drama that has been happening around here. But, you can't allow what's happening to me to affect you. Regardless of my problems with your father, Bonnie, he loves you. And Ella, you have to consider your husband's feelings now too. Belle is still his mother and that will never change. Don't let it put a strain on your marriage, honey."

Ella cast her eyes downward. It was already putting a strain on her marriage. She and Taz had barely spoken for days now.

"Don't make us go Mom, please."

Scarlett looked up at her daughters. Once little girls, they were now women. Sashaying across the invisible line that crosses between mothers and daughters. The one that quietly dissipates as the years flit by. One minute they're playing with dolls and the next they are planning their weddings and standing their ground as adults with their parents. They change from being your babies in the blink of an eye. Scarlett wished she had savored those moments when they would run through the house- hand in hand- echoing laughter wherever they went. Her little Ariel and Snow White. Her princesses.

"What if I invite everyone to come here for Thanksgiving?"

"Everyone?", Ella questioned. " As in my father and stepmother, Uncle Rhett and Miss Belle, plus Uncle Ashley and that whole crew?"

Scarlett nodded.

"Are you planning a mass murder or something ? Because I'm too pretty to be digging multiple graves." Bonnie could see this as the only reason her mother would willingly invite their entire, extended, dysfunctional family.

"Eugenie Victoria, you know we save all our murders for Christmas time.", her mother said as she winked at her.

Bonnie felt a surge of emotion within her. Funny. Her mother was funny. Who knew?

She wrapped her arms around her daughters and kissed their heads. "It will be fine. I was planning on being quite inebriated anyway- don't forget that your Aunt Sue will be here as well. And besides, now all that hash I confiscated from Bonnie will finally come in handy."

Scarlett left the girls to continue their mission of making over poor Amiee with a fake smile and cheery disposition. They were placated with her suggestion. Now she had to follow through with it. " This should fun." She thought. Yet, she was surprised at the calm she felt in it. As if it were the right thing to do – causing her soul to find peace. She could almost feel Melanie smiling down on her. The sensation buoyed her. She'd invite Richard too. It was their **_first_** Thanksgiving after all. It wouldn't be that bad, she reasoned. This might be exactly what they all need.

She ticked off the boxes in her head for needed supplies as she walked toward her office. Phillipe was standing there peering into her bookshelves.

" _Bonjour, Phillipe_ "

"Bonjour, Katie. Did everything go well today?"

She shrugged her shoulders. " No one's in jail, so that's a plus."

He placed a large box on her desk and sat down. " This is for you." She eyed the large box before answering.

" _Pour moi? un cadeau_?" The box was bulging. And old. And smelly. Scarlett wrinkled her nose as the pungent odor of mothballs filled her nostrils when she lifted the lid. Inside were letters. Dozens upon dozens of them.

She didn't fight back the tears that filled her eyes at the familiar, elegant handwriting of the sender.

 _ **Ellen R. O' Hara**_

"These are from my mother." She said as she ran her fingertips along the pressure marks her mother's pen had made. She had thought that as she grew older, the emptiness she felt at the loss of her mother would dissipate; only to discover that the opposite were true. The older she got, the feelings of loss increased. Of course, Mammy was wonderful; she was a great mother to Scarlett and her sisters. There was no doubting that. But, the truth was the Scarlett needed her mother. There was a place in her heart that Mammy could never fill. She'd give anything to be able to lay her head in her mother's lap and relinquish all of her worries and concerns.

 _Mama, what do I do ? How do I fix this? Help me, Mama. Tell me it's okay._

Phillipe felt the sting of tears in his own eyes as he watched his daughter cry. " Yes, as you can see we kept up a good correspondence over the years."

Scarlett fingered through the letters. They were dated back as far as 1979- the year she was born. "What did you two write about?" Her voice cracked with emotion.

"Anything and everything; but mostly about you. She loved you so much, Katie. Never doubt that."

She let out a little sob as the tears poured down her cheeks. Without question, she knew her mother loved her. As the oldest, she had a special bond with her mother that her sisters didn't.

Scarlett could remember how she smelled, a mixture between lemon and lavender, the high pitched way she would sing ABBA songs as she cooked dinner, her love of puzzles and flowers and Audrey Hepburn movies.

How many times had they watched Roman Holiday snuggled up in her big bed eating eclairs ?

" _Elle est belle, maman_ ", Scarlett would say through the sweet cream pastry in her mouth.

" _Not as beautiful as you, mon petit"_

"I think about her every day." She sat in her office chair with the letters in her lap. " I wonder if she'd be proud of me. She was always so kind and calm. I always wanted to be like her." She smirked a little. "I'm afraid I turned out to be disappointing in that area. She died so suddenly. I didn't even know she was sick.

Did you know that I was the one who found her?"

Phillipe shook his head " No, I didn't know that."

"It was early. Before anyone else was up. She was sitting in one of the chairs by the fireplace. I thought she was sleeping, she looked so peaceful. I touched her and she was cold and stiff. I remember screaming for my father. He screamed her name and shook her by the shoulders. I was in hysterics. Fucking Meningitis"

"Meningitis?"

"Yes, Meningitis. It's what killed her. And she probably caught it from that trash…that horrible family….those Slattery's. She was always helping them out. A bunch of drug addicts is what they were ….and are."

Phillipe looked confused. " You think she died of Meningitis? Who told you this?"

Scarlett looked at him in frustration. Both father and daughter were mirror images of each other. Each had their right eyebrow raised.

"This is common knowledge, Phillipe. Ask anyone. She died of bacterial Meningitis."

He ran his hand through his hair and gave a loud sigh. He wasn't sure how or why she was told this fallacy. He had to tell her the truth. She had a right to know how her mother died.

"Katie, I don't know who told you this, but it isn't true. Your mother didn't die from Meningitis. She died from a massive heart attack caused by a drug overdose."


	26. Chapter 26

Credit given to M. Mitchell and A. Ripley for all Gone with the Wind and Scarlett characters .

Sorry for the delay guys…..Here you go.

STW

Rhett stood before his front door like an idiot. Should he knock or use his key? It was technically still his house, so he would be completely justified in unlocking the door and walking in. He could hear animated voices coming from inside. Scarlett's sisters and their families were already there. Why should he knock when they probably wouldn't even hear it? Wouldn't they think he looked ridiculous knocking on his own front door?

"Are you trying to will the door to open with your Jedi mind tricks ? Should I start calling you Yoda? Stupid, my brother is…. Scared of Scarlett, you are…." , said Rosie. She knocked on the door, saving Rhett from his deep convictions about using his house keys.

Piper, Suellen's eight year old daughter greeted them. She was covered in a sticky reside that Rhett hoped was cake or cookie batter. " Hiya, Uncle Rhett!" she said, "I was gonna ask you why you knocked on the door, but then I remembered that you don't live here no more." Rhett tousled her dirty blonde locks. He didn't live here no more…"from the mouths of babes", he thought.

"Hi munchkin. Yes, I don't live here right now. Actually" , he said to her in a whisper, "I'm in hiding. I'm a secret agent. Don't tell anybody." Piper smiled; her teeth were covered in metal braces. "Mama told Daddy that you don't live here with Auntie because she doesn't love you no more."

Rhett felt his stomach drop. Auntie doesn't love you no more.

His mother and sister swept by him. He prayed that they didn't hear Piper. He could not, in any way, deal with his mother, or his sister for that matter, taking him to task on the state of his marriage any more than they already did.

Rosie barreled through the dining room and into the kitchen. "Where is that prissy bitch anyway? Scarlett !? I'm here! Your favorite person is here!"

He and Scarlett always gave their staff off on Thanksgiving and Christmas. On those days, they were left to fend for themselves. Scarlett, Mammy, and her sisters would make dinner…or at least attempt to make dinner. Maggie would be in there helping too, while Rosie just got drunk on the cooking sherry and critiqued the whole operation. The kids would run up and down their grand staircase, screaming joyfully with Forest at their heels. The older ones would drape themselves over the furniture in the study, saying how bored they were while taking ridiculous selfies and sending them to random people. His mother and Scarlett's Aunt Pitty would be engrossed in the latest gossip while the men sat in the parlor smoking cigars and watching football. Then, they would all gather around the massive dining room table and give thanks for all they had been given and for each other. Dinner would last for hours and end with most of the family completely drunk and forced to spend the night. It was wonderful. This Thanksgiving however, would be very different.

"Rosalinda! You're here !" Rosalinda. Scarlett only ever called Rosie that when she was drunk or well on her way to it. She clung to Rosie as if she'd gone years without seeing her. "And you brought Julia!", she said as she reached out and grabbed Julia's hand.

Julia was Rosie's girlfriend. They had been together for years. They even lived together. Rosie had never officially come out. Not publicly at least. Ask her and she'd tell you that she's gay. But as far as an announcement to the entire world, she was mum on the issue of her sexuality. She was too scared. She knew her mother would not handle it well, so to the outside world , at least the part of the world that liked to ignore things that made them uncomfortable, Rosie and Julia were just best friends.

"Still as beautiful as I remember", Julia said as she kissed Scarlett's pink cheek. Scarlett puckered up her lips a little and gave a sexy wink.

Rhett cleared his throat in a way that announced his presence. Scarlett tore herself away from Rosie and Julia and walked toward Rhett and his mother. "Hello, Miss Eleanor. It's so good to see you. You too Rhett.", she said as she kissed them both on the cheek. Rhett noticed that when she kissed him, her lips never actually touched his face. Only her cheek was pressed against his. He could smell her familiar scent. The floral scent wafted over him leaving him in longing.

"Knock , knock !", Maggie said as she opened the front door. " Mags !", Scarlett screamed as she flew past Rhett and his mother and flung her arms around her other sister in law, wrapping her in a tight embrace. " Oh, I've missed you so much.", Maggie said with her voice muffled by Scarlett's wild curls. "And look at you ! You're positively glowing. ", she said while pulling back from Scarlett to get a better look.

Rhett noticed it too. She did seem happy…and relaxed. Did not having him in her life make her happy? Or maybe it was the ridiculous amount of money she was now getting as " support payments" that lit her face up like a Christmas tree?

He took notice of her appearance and mannerisms as she spoke. He had told himself that he wasn't going to do this , but her couldn't help himself. He had missed her so much that at times, he thought he was going crazy. He missed the way she would rub her cold feet on him before they went to bed at night, the way she only ate the cream out of an éclair and discarded the rest of the pastry, how she closed her eyes and swayed back and forth when she listened to Billy Joel songs. He missed her laugh, her touch, the dimples that came out when she smiled. He missed the way she stumbled around in the morning looking for her glasses, the way she cursed while trying to brush through the tangles in her hair, the way she would randomly crawl into his lap and ask to be held. He missed her. And here, before him stood that same exquisite woman. He refused to believe that he had lost her.

He saw that she had much less make up on than usual. You could even see some of her freckles – something that had once been unheard of. Her hair was pulled back in a loose hair tie that was no match for the endless ringlets and curly Qs. She wore simple skinny blue jeans with a light cornflower blue tunic top. Her pearl earrings and wedding set were her only jewelry….And she was wearing her glasses. Her adorable purple glasses. She was radiant. Relaxed, happy, and radiant.

"Well, I've been drinking since we got back from visiting my dad this morning", Scarlett said as she lifted her wine glass with a giggle. "And Suellen has been here since last night….so, I'm surprised that I'm not already three sheets to the wind. You know she's pregnant again? Number seven. So now, she's even a bigger bitch than usual"

Rhett felt a hand give her shoulder a hard squeeze. "Well, hello stranger", Brent said before slapping Rhett's back with a hug.

"Brent . How the hell are you, man ? I guess I have been a little MIA around here lately. Where's Will?"

Brent gestured to the parlor behind them." He's in there. But, I have to tell you before you go in that he's really pissed at you for not showing up at the hearing. Why would you not come? And are you really living with Belle Watling?"

Rhett ran his hand over his mustache and two day old stubble of a beard. He knew he was looking like Shit. His sister had told him as much on the ride over. "Hell no. And I told Scarlett that. She was just helping me out by picking up some stuff I needed that I wasn't able to get while the kids were there. But in typical Scarlett fashion, she didn't believe me. You should have heard the shit she screamed at me. This time she surprised me with a new threat to cut the brake lines in my car…. And she called Belle a fat, fucking cunt. I didn't know what she'd say … or do.. if I showed up, so I thought it best for me to stay home."

Brent mouth formed a grim line. " She needed you there, Rhett."

Rhett took a deep breath as he shook his head and casted his eyes downward. " I miss her so much, Brent." He gave Brent a pathetic smile. "You think we'll get through this?"

Brent gave a small shrug of uncertainty before leading Rhett to the parlor where the other men were watching the game. "I don't know, man. I really don't know. You really hurt her this time. From what I gather from Careen, and mind you – that's not a lot, she's been finding out more and more about those women. She came over last week and just cried. She was so upset that Careen and I insisted that she spend the night."

Rhett closed his eyes and felt the sting of tears in his eyes. He hated to think of her crying.

Brent cleared his throat as they entered the room. "Ladies and gentlemen", he announced to the gaggle of people before them, " I give you the infamous Rhett Butler!"

"Daddy", Bonnie said as she rose from her perch on the arm of the sofa next to where Beau was sitting and kissed his cheek. " Is it weird yet?"

"It's about to be." Rhett gave a nod of greeting to Ashley. "Where's your sister and brother?"

"Upstairs. Gerry's playing with Parker and Preston and you know how Cat hates being around a lot of people, so Mama said they could stay upstairs until dinner."

"They're up there alone?" , Rett questioned. "Preston is barely walking."

"No, Grand-père is up there too. Gerry and Cat are crazy about him."

"Not you , though?"

"No. I am too." She gave him a smile that was pure Scarlett.

Rhett frowned a little. More than ever it seemed as though time was slipping by. Bonnie was more woman than girl now.

"Don't worry, Daddy. I still love you more", she said as she folded into her father for a hug.

"Beau's very popular with your cousins, isn't he?"

As soon as Bonnie had vacated her perch on the arm of the sofa, Suellen's seventeen year old twins, Phoebe and Penelope had pounced upon him. The identical red-heads flirted openly with him – batting eyelashes and touching his arms and chest. No doubt they were tricks they learned from their mother and aunts.

Bonnie rolled her eyes. She appeared to be irritated and perhaps even a bit jealous. Rhett dismissed the thought from his head. One woman in his life obsessed with a Wilkes was enough, two would be unthinkable.

Rhett could hear Ella's sing -sound voice coming from the entry way. Somehow, he expected her voice to change. But it was still the same. The same voice that for years would call to her mother and stepfather from the entryway saying ," I'm home!". She had arrived with Taz; and with her came Frank and India and….Belle.

"Shit", Rhett thought. He prayed that Scarlett was buzzed enough to handle this. Not just one, but three people that were known to raise her blood pressure had arrived all at once. Bonnie heard her sister's voice and winked at her father. She brushed past him to greet her sister, and if she was honest- to see first hand all the crazy that was about to happen.

"My goodness Bonnie", India stated as the sixteen year old beauty walked toward her. " The older you get, the more you like your mother." India was already starting. The disgusting nature of true self was evident in that she chose to begin her vindictiveness with a teenager.

"Thank you for the compliment Miss India. My mother is totally gorgeous. Wouldn't you agree, Mr. Frank?"

Rhett stood back and beamed with pride at his daughter. She really was a carbon copy of Scarlett. His mini pet. He felt a light touch on his elbow and turned to face his stepson. He felt a sob of emotion rise in his throat. Wade was a man. Why hadn't he realized it before? The realization of this hit him all at once. The little boy, the one with the soft brown curls and pockets filled with rocks and power rangers had grown up.

Wade thrust his hand forward to his stepfather. " Rhett."

Under normal circumstances, Rhett would have chastised Wade for the brash way he had addressed him, but not today. He could see the anger flickering in Wade's eyes. He was , and always had been, a mama's boy. Of course he would seethe in anger at the man who had caused her so much pain.

"Hello, son." Rhett said; not failing to notice to flash of a disgust that swept across Wade's face. "It's good to see you."

Wade was as tall as him now. His gangly little-boy frame had morphed into that of an offense lineman. It shouldn't have surprised him. From the pictures Scarlett had shown him of Wade's father showed him to be a handsome and muscular man. The span of Wade's broad shoulders had to be twice of Rhett's. There was no doubt in Rhett's mind that given the chance, Wade could wipe the floor with him.

Wade's jaw was set in a tight line as he wrapped an arm around Aimee, bringing her close. " You remember Aimee, of course."

"Captain Butler", Aimee said as she moved to kiss Rhett's cheek.

Rhett smiled baring his white teeth. " How could I forget such a beauty?", he teased.

Wade curled his upper lip in the same way his mother did. "That I don't doubt, Rhett. It seems that you could never forget a beauty. After all, isn't that little character flaw what cost you my mother? "

STW

Belle felt a sense of nervousness that she had never felt before. She'd been arrested three times on charges of prostitution and once for harboring an illegal alien. For one week she was held captive as the forced sex slave of the second general in command of a Cuban drug cartel. She'd been stabbed, shot at, and witnessed first-hand the murder of three people. Yet, never, in all those experiences, had she experienced the overwhelming feeling of dread as she did now.

She reasoned that she really had nothing to feel badly about. She wasn't living with Rhett and she certainly wasn't sleeping with him. The one time she acts in a manner of pure friendship and nothing else, and it's then when Scarlett finally catches them together. Belle was shocked at the amount of vitriol that Scarlett's petite little body contained. She couldn't help but smile a little every time she thought about those ugly curse words coming out of her perfectly pouty lips. Scarlett O'Hara continued to be a wonder to her. An invariably complex woman of hidden eccentricities. And that…..made her dangerous.

Looking over at Frank, Belle could see that he shared her apprehension. She'd be the first to admit that she didn't fully understand the level of connectedness she would have with the pillars of Atlanta's oldest families when Tazwell married Ella. The frequency in which she was thrown into situations with Ella's father, stepmother, and mother left her wishing she hadn't given up her daily cocaine habit years ago. Some blow would have made this so much easier, she reasoned.

"Ella, darling!" Scarlett said as she threw her arms around her oldest daughter and kissed her cheek. " Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Thank you for coming."

Belle just smiled like an idiot. Because she was an idiot. An idiot who was once again in thrown into a situation where she had to smile and give pleasantries to the woman who had taken away her heart's greatest desire: Rhett.

She'd never been in this house before. She'd never been through the front gates of the subdivision. She wasn't worthy. She was his dirty secret – that wasn't really a secret. He built this mansion for Scarlett. He wrapped her in furs and diamonds, made her his wife, wanted her to be the mother of his children, while Belle was hidden away, like some secret habit he liked to indulge in from time to time.

" Belle", Scarlett said with a mocking half-smile that deepened only one dimple. "Ya'll don't mind if I steal her away for a quick minute?" She linked her arm with Belle's and pulled her toward a closed set of doors ."I have to show you the dress I was thinking about wearing to the wedding. I think we should at least be on the same color scheme, don't you ?" , she said to Belle in a sickingly sweet honeyed tone.

Belle shot her son a look of pure terror that said : save me. He just smiled back at her. Newly-wed love had made him stupid. Just being in reaching distance of his pretty red-headed wife turned his mind to goo. Never mind that his mother was being led to her death.

Scarlett gestured for Belle to enter in the room first. The second Scarlett sauntered in, her face turned to stone and she shut and locked the door.

"You don't really want to discuss color schemes do you ?" , Belle said as she stated the obvious.

"I don't give a shit what you wear to the wedding. We both know that I'll look a thousand times better than you in whatever I wear anyway. Who is M.S. ?"

Belle furrowed her eyebrows together in confusion. " M.S.? "

Scarlett took a long, deep breath and glanced at the closed door. "Don't play dumb with me , Belle. Who is M.S. ?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Scarlett."

Before Belle even knew what was happening, she found herself laid out on the floor, clutching her face. Scarlett had slapped her straight across the face.

"Did you just hit me ?!"

"Who is M.S.", said Scarlett once again as she stood over her.

"You really are fucking crazy."

Belle staggered to her feet only to be knocked down once again by a blow to ger chest.

"WHO IS M.S. !"

She took it in stride the first time Scarlett hit her. She figured she deserved it for all the times she slept with the poor woman's husband. But once was all she would allow. After receiving a second blow from Scarlett, Belle was going to fight back. " So this is how you want to play?", Belle said as she gathered her bright red tresses into a hair tie. "Remember Scarlett, you were the one who hit me first."

Belle swung at Scarlett with everything she had in her. Her fist connected with Scarlett's jaw in a loud smack. Scarlett was knocked backwards and sent crashing into a large sculpture of a horse and rider. She clutched the side of her face as she fell to her knees. Her precious purple glasses were broken into two uneven pieces. One lens was cracked.

"You broke my glasses!", yelled Scarlett before throwing her whole weight into a sucker punch to Belle's stomach. The blow forced Belle's torso downward as she recovered from the blow. She curled her left arm across her middle and drove her right fist into Scarlett's knee cap. As she fell, Belle bent forward and grabbed a handful of Scarlett's hair and yanked as hard as she could.

Scarlett's piercing scream rang in her ears, disorienting Belle a bit, and was followed with a swift uppercut to her jaw. Belle instinctively covered her jaw, leaving her upper body vulnerable. Scarlett drew back her hand and back-handed Belle so hard that it left a ringing noise in her ears. Scarlett played on this vulnerability and jumped onto Belle's back. Belle tried to throw her off but Scarlett didn't budge. Instead she wrapped her legs around Belle tighter and started slapping her face repeatedly.

"Who." Slap "Is." Slap. "She?" Slap.

The weight of Scarlett coupled by the disorientation from the numerous slaps to her right temple, forced Belle to the ground. Belle didn't feel the force of the impact that her body made with the hard-wood floors. Scarlett's body had broken her fall. Belle heard her groaning as she rolled away from Belle.

As if driven by some unseen source of energy, Scarlett jumped to her feet and stood before Belle. She grabbed her iMac and held it in both her hand. Drawing it back, she gathered the momentum to strike Belle with this expensive piece of technology.

Belle watched closely as Scarlett moved toward her. Without her glasses, her vision was impaired. Belle took advantage of this and with all her might drove her foot into Scarlett's stomach as she came forward; the force of which was so intense that the weight of Scarlett's body broke the coffee table as she fell back on it.

Scarlett was gasping for air. She hadn't moved and was making gurgling noises. Oh fuck! I killed her! Belle thought for an instant.

Thankfully she was alive. Scarlett took her time getting up and moving. The last kick had knocked the wind out of her. She turned her head to the side a spat out some saliva mixed with blood. Belle felt her heart quicken a bit. She really had hurt her. She worried about what this would mean. What would Ella think of her mother in law now? What would Rhett think?

"Here, let me help you up." She said as she reached down to help Scarlett.

"Fuck you", said Scarlett as she coiled away. She moved onto all fours and got up on her own – one leg at a time. She ran a hand through her hair and adjusted her clothes. She tore off a cap of battled water and began gulping the cold liquid down.

Belle handed her a Kleenex ." You have a little blood- right there- " she indicated to the right corner of her mouth, "on your face." She was winded herself and fell back onto the plush sofa in the room. Scarlett followed suit and passed the water bottle to her. Belle could see Scarlett's bottom lip starting to swell and a faint purple that would most certainly become a bruise appear on her left cheek. It was official. She had just beat the shit out of Scarlett O'Hara. She imagined that there would have been deafening cheering coming from half the women in Atlanta if they had known what she had just done.

Interestingly, it seemed that there was a palatable lack of tension between them now. Two minutes ago they were beating the crap out of each other and now they were sitting next to each other and sharing a bottle of water.

" M.S. are the initials of the woman Rhett was with after Cat was born. I know the other four, including the two that went public, worked for you. That was easy to find out. The information on them was right there, as if he wanted me to find it. They were all little flings. Nothing serious. But this M.S. person was. I think they fell in love. Do you have any idea what this realization does to me ?"

"Yeah. I can imagine how terrible it must feel to have the man you love fall in love with someone else."

Scarlett looked at Belle with narrowed eyes. "Belle, I never signed up for infidelity. When I married him, I expected him to honor our vows. Especially after we had Cat. There was no 'agreement' between us like the two of you had. Hell, I didn't even know about you for years." She leaned back and covered her face with her hands. "Why does he keep doing this ?"

Belle just listened. She didn't know if Scarlett was asking her for her opinion or speaking hypothetically.

" This M.S. person", she continued, "she was hidden. It was very difficult to find her, but I did. He must have thought he deleted all the evidence of her, but he didn't delete the server. My hacker was able to infiltrate it in a couple of hours to reveal her. Some of those e mails were awful. She would disgustingly recount to him the way it felt when he screwed her, the way he looked, what he said. Makes me sick."

Scarlett tore at the tissue in her hands. "Please tell me the truth, Belle. Do you really not know who she is ?"

Belle shook her head no as she watched the purple spread across Scarlett's cheek. She suddenly felt the urge to put her arm around Scarlett; to comfort her in some way.

"They even talked about me, Belle. How they didn't want to hurt me. They went back and forth about telling me." Scarlett clutched her chest and took on a mocking tone as she said, "I hate to keep this from Scarlett , but it's for the best that she not know. Complete bullshit. Oh, and here's the best part". She turned to face Belle "The last time they communicated was two months ago. This thing between them is still going on. "

Belle leaned back into the sofa and took a deep breath. She was sure that Rhett would have told her about it if he was cheating on Scarlett. She knew about all the other woman because he had told her about them right after they happened. She knew what he was doing the whole time. She couldn't help but feel jealous that Rhett was sleeping with these girls. They were much younger and thinner than Belle was. The only reason she hadn't fired them on the spot was that she felt a sense of satisfaction in the knowledge that Rhett was being unfaithful to Scarlett with numerous women. But she really didn't know any M.S., or about any romantic trysts Rhett had since his reconciliation with his wife. As far as she knew, Rhett was one hundred percent faithful to Scarlett.

" Did you talk to Rhett about this ?" , she asked.

Scarlett gave her a look that that said, you must be joking if you think I did that. She balled up her tissue and threw it to the ground. She reached down and picked up the two broken halves of her glasses. "These were my favorite glasses. You're buying me another pair."

Belle walked toward the desk and ripped a piece of tape from the dispenser. She took the halves of Scarlett's glasses and wrapped the tape across the broken sections, tapping them together. "Here", she said placing them on Scarlett's face. "Good as new."

They both laughed at the absurdity of it all.

" Just think. One day we'll be able to tell our grandkids about the time their grandmas got into a fist fight. We'll be the coolest grandma's ever", said Scarlett.

Tiny clicking noises could be heard coming from the doorknob. It opened to reveal Scarlett's middle daughter.

"What did we say about picking the locks?", said Scarlett. She was still wearing her lopsided glasses with one frame cracked in the middle.

"What the hell happened in here ? Did you two have a fight?", Bonnie said as she surveyed the damage in the office.

"We both wanted to wear the same dress for the wedding. What can I say?" , answered Belle.

Scarlett laughed at that. "She obviously won.", she said as she pointed towards Belle.

Bonnie's eyes widened. She was beginning to think she didn't know her mother at all. She could be funny and she got into fist-fights? Who was this woman?!

"Dad's about to wig the fuck out."

"Language.", Scarlett reprimanded her in a monotone voice that told Belle that this was a frequent admonishment for Bonnie.

"There's some British guy named Richard here and , um…, let's say that it's not going well. You better get out there before somebody dies."

STW

" Richard!", Scarlett said as she walked toward the gaggle of men coagulating near her front door. She kissed both his cheeks and hugged the little boy who hid behind hid behind his legs.

"Gerry!", she called over her shoulder. "Luke's here!"

Gerry bounded around the Corinthian column separating the parlor from the foyer clad in his paw -patrol costume from Halloween, a pink tutu, and a dinosaur mask. Rhett did a double take at his son's choice of clothes.

He gave Rhett a quick, " Hi Daddy", before leading his friend to his playroom.

"I came baring gifts.", Richard said as he handed Scarlett a chilled bottle of Chardonnay. She smiled and thanked him. She could see that Rhett was seething in jealously. The thought thrilled her and sent little shocks of electricity down her spine, turning her on a little. A wicked thought crossed her mind.

Rhett or Richard ? Decisions , decisions ….

The sneer on Rhett's face was barely concealed as he spoke. "She hates Chardonnay. She says it tastes like butter." And she had – on more than one occasion. If he wanted to make sure she didn't overindulge in wine during dinner, he opened the Chardonnay. If he wanted her to throw herself at him, tearing his clothes off and acting like a seductive temptress, he open the Bordeaux. He remembered the time when they hadn't even made it from the table to the bedroom. They had made love right there on top of the varnished wood. He smiled as he thought of that night and the morning after. He remembered how during breakfast Mammy had loudly voiced her displeasure in her daughter's wanton behavior the previous night.

" Do you know that Fitz came to me this morning that she found ass prints on the table?! Ass prints! We eat on that table, little girl !"

"Oh, but I love this one." She pulled him from his revelry with her voice .The vineyard is right here in Atlanta and we were given a tour. I fell madly in love with it.", Scarlett answered as she surveyed the bottle in her hands.

"We?", Rhett questioned. He knew the answer. He just wanted to hear her say it.

"Richard and me", she answered.

The anger stewing inside Rhett had become so intense that a red hue was starting to spread up his neck. It gave Scarlett a high like none other.

"Come and meet my family", she said to Richard as she walked arm in arm with him away from Rhett.

STW

"It's ready ! Time to eat!", Rosemary yelled in a shrill tone that sounded like it came from a fishmonger's wife.

"Everyone just sit wherever you want", announced Scarlett as everyone moved around the table.

The table was covered with every food imaginable. Roasted and friend turkey, ham, duck, mashed potatoes, honeyed yams and sweet potatoes. Collard greens, corn, three types of stuffing, buttered rolls, gravy, and a small plate of sliced cranberries made specifically for Uncle Peter. Thanksgiving and Christmas were the only two times in the year that the massive table proved to be useful. Otherwise it was simply a surface collecting dust.

Scarlett sat on the far end of the table with Wade directly across from her on the other end. Rhett sat between Bonnie and Careen and was opposite Richard who was flanked by Beau and Phillipe .

Scarlett raised her voice above the din of chatter. "Thank you all for coming. This Thanksgiving is a first for many reasons. This is our first year without Mammy and with my new son-in-law and my future daughter-in-law. And I can't forget our three continental guests that are here. Phillipe, Luke, and Richard, thank you so much for joining us. We all have so much to be thankful for. More than I could ever say without crying. So, to spare you and myself the horror of my ugly cry face, I have asked Wade to say the blessing this year."

As all the heads at the table bowed while Wade thanked God for all that He had blessed them with this year, Rhett lifted his eyes to look at Scarlett. Her eyes met his immediately. There were tears in them. Rhett felt his chest start to tighten. She was trying so hard to put on a brave face, for him, for herself, for her family, for the kids, but inside she was broken. He had done this. He had broken her. She gave him a weak smile that almost overtook him. More than anything, he wanted to tell her that he loved her. That he had always only loved her. That he was lost without her. That she was the center of his whole world. He was filled with so much emotion that he didn't notice the tears that were filling his own eyes until he blinked and the teardrops fell onto the plate before him.

The dishes of food were passed around, the wine was flowing, and pleasant, mingling conversating could be heard along the table. All seemed okay – normal even. That was, until it wasn't.

"Scarlett, does Cat need to wear the headphones during Thanksgiving dinner?", Rhett asked. He hated how singled out she always was. She would never be treated like a normal kid if Scarlett kept allowing her eccentric behaviors to continue. Scarlett smacked her lips together as she took a sip of her wine. "If it makes her feel more comfortable, then yes."

Rhett shook his head in defeat. An action he knew drove Scarlett crazy. " What?", she said without raising her voice. " I take it you think I should make her take them off. That this is just more of my indulgent behavior?"

Rhett moved around the food on his plate like a small child being chastised by his mother. "I'm not saying anything , Scarlett. You do what you want. You obviously know best." He emphasized the last sentence to goad her irritation further.

"I do know best", she said through her clenched teeth.

" Most assuredly, my pet. I also assume that your superior parenting skills are what drove you to allow our son to dress like a girl today?"

Bonnie tried to lighten the tension brewing between her parents by asking Richard questions about England. She knew the slim chances she had at this working, but she had to try. Her parents were like two animals fighting to the death when they got into arguments. It was only over when one of them drew blood.

"A girl, Rhett ? How?" Scarlett put down her fork and gave him a challenging look. Raised eyebrow, pursed lips, narrowed eyes.

"He's wearing a damn tutu, Scarlett. A pink tutu", Rhett said while trying to maintain his composure.

" So only girls can wear tutus and the color pink? I wasn't aware that the words 'vagina required' ' were printed on the clothing tag, Rhett. But perhaps you know something I don't. Might this because you secretly have your own pink tutu ?"

Richard couldn't help but laugh. Rhett's machismo was typical American male.

" Was something I said funny?", Rhett snapped at him.

"Ignore him, Richard. He's in a perpetual dick-comparing contest with any man that he feels intimidated by", Scarlett said as she dismissively waved her hand. Her Aunt Pitty gave an uncharacteristically loud laugh at that comment.

" You should be in a perfect position to judge between them. Wouldn't you, my pet?"

"Lemme judge them, Scarlett dear. I bet neither one can beat Peter's black mamba.", Pitty blurted out as she held out her hands to indicate the length of her husband's penis.

Scarlett fluttered her eyes in an eye-roll. " Is this your way of insinuating that I'm screwing Richard? Because it's really none of your business if I am. And I'm not your fucking pet. If I were, I'd have scratched your eyes out long ago. "

Careen kicked at Sue's leg under the table. "Is she drunk?"', she mouthed as she nodded toward where their aunt was seated. Sue shook her head no and leaned in towards her sister. "No, she was losing her shit with the soap opera cast of people here, so I gave her a little something to calm down."

"What did you give her", Careen whispered back.

" Only one Percocet"

Careen slapped the table with both hands and covered her face.

"What? She's calm, isn't she?", said Suellen.

"And telling us all about Uncle Peter's shlong !", Careen said while gesturing to her long suffering uncle.

"He can't hear you. He turned off his hearing aid a long time ago. Watch." Suellen turned to her uncle and tapped the tines of her fork against his plate to get his attention. " Uncle Peter, what do you say that after dinner we grab a couple of baseball bats and go about breaking the windows of all the cars outside?"

Peter smiled and nodded his head.

"Then when can shave Scarlett's head and kick the shit out of her. Sound good?"

"Absolutely", Peter said as he placed his forkful of canned cranberries into his mouth.

"Ya like Nascar, Frank?", Will asked while piling massive amounts of food on his fork. He knew that his wife hated when he did this, but she was too involved in her conversation with her sister to notice.

I like to get a little of everything in one bite, was his reason.

Frank shook his head. " Never been too into racing. I like baseball, though. I'm all about those Braves."

Will harbored no ill will against Frank. He had no burning desire to kill the man. If Will was a deeply introspective person he would have wondered what this said about the state of his marriage.

More than the fact that Frank and Sue were once engaged, Will knew that his wife still loved the man. He had known it for years. He had to give it to her for trying to make a good show of it. She avoided eye-contact with Frank and steered clear of his direction. She and Will made love constantly. Their six girls were proof of that. But her eyes couldn't lie. Frank was, and would always be, her first choice, Will was the consolation prize.

Yet, little did Suellen know that she was a consolation prize as well. Will's first choice was Careen.

Will wagged his knife at Frank. "You wanna' know a real good sport that's en'taing as all get up? Wrestling. Monday Night Raw."

"Brent" Ashley called across the table, "Is it just me or does Scarlett's face looked bruised on one side?" Brent tried to move to an angle that gave him a better view. " I can't really tell from here. It looks to me like that make-up crap that women to use to make their faces look skinner."

"Contouring", Suellen's fifteen year old daughter Poppy added.

"What she said", Brent concluded.

Frank swallowed the greasy slab of ham that was in his mouth and surveyed his ex-wife's face. Even all these years and the hell that she had put him through, he couldn't deny how beautiful she was. During their sole year of marriage, when people saw them together, the men would slap Frank on the back and tell him how jealous they were of him.

"You get to go to bed with that ?! You are one lucky son-of-a -bitch!"

They didn't know that he had only been intimate with his wife once -the one time that created Ella. She wouldn't allow him to touch her throughout their entire marriage. Not even a kiss on the cheek or a touch of the hand. NOTHING. Once, and only once had she almost relented. She was eight days past her due date with Ella and was miserable. He had come home from work that day to find her waddling along the hallway of their home.

"Frank, I need to have this baby. I can't take this another day. I've walked, ate spicy food, taken castor oil…. Everything. The only thing left is sex. Frank, I need you to do me a big favor and have sex with me. "

Frank stood there in silence. Did she just ask him for sex?

"It has the best chance for pushing me into active labor. But I think it's more the orgasm during sex that does the trick , so I need you to get it right. Can we do this …like , now? "

"Um… sure. Let me just take a quick shower."

Frank ran into their bathroom and jumped into the shower. He scrubbed furiously at his skin, scouring away the dirt and grime that covered him from the store. He couldn't believe his good fortune. She had even asked him to make her come. He was just drying off when Scarlett came into the bathroom and told him that her water had just broken and his services were no longer needed.

He wasn't even allowed in the delivery room when she gave birth to their daughter. Melanie and Mammy were the ones who stood by her side, helping her push.

He may not have been familiar with her body, but he knew her face well. He remembered how he would watch her while she slept, memorizing her features as she dreamt. She had woken once and caught him staring at her from the doorway to her room. After that, she began locking the door. It was for naught though. He already had her features carved into his brain.

" That's most definitely a bruise. And her eye looks like it might be a little swollen. Do you think she fell or something?"

"Possible. You know she has been sick lately. She was rushed to hospital not too long ago", Brent informed them.

Carreen nudged Brent with her knee. Scarlett did not want the world to know about her medical issues. Especially not India or Frank.

"Or maybe someone hit her", said Ashley. His eyes narrowed at Rhett. "You know, I've seen bruises on her face before."

The three men all turned to stare at Scarlett. She was still talking to Rhett with great animation. Their body language and sarcastic smiles indicated that their conversation had turned ugly. Pitty had noticed them and waved like a maniac to them.

India poured more wine into her glass. "Why don't you go ask her if someone hit her, Frank? Get a little closer, maybe. I mean, since you've been undressing her with your eyes since we got here, this might give you a reason to soak more of her in."

Frank reeled back in his chair. " I have not, India. I barely even looked at her from the moment we walked in the door."

"Need some more material for the spank bank, do ya Frank ?", laughed Will as he made a rude hand gesture.

India turned toward her husband. Her features were turned into an ugly scowl. "You are such a liar. That women has all you fools tangled up in her web. This is all part of her own sick little game. Poor Scarlett gets hurt and all the boys just rush to her aid. She's the most conniving whore I've ever seen. Don't you realize that she's had sex with almost half the men at this table?"

"Oh, I didn't have sex with her. She only ever let me feel her tits.", Brent said as he bit into a roll.

Rhett's mother cleared her throat and glared at the men sitting near her. Seriously. Their conversation was totally inappropriate. Even if she did agree with some of India's retort on her daughter -in-law, the dining room table was no place for it.

"Hey Mags, what did they say?" Rosie , never one to be left out, asked. Maggie shrugged her shoulders. She was across from Eleanor and only heard bits and pieces of the conversation. She knew they were talking about Scarlett and Rhett. It was the elephant in the room. Everyone had an opinion on the fate of the Butler marriage. Maggie didn't want to get involved. Whatever was going on between Scarlett and Rhett , she wanted no part of. She had her own fair share of marital problems to deal with.

Ella noticed the faint blush of purple on her mother's face and called over to her brother. "Wade. Does mom have a bruise on her face?"

Wade narrowed his chocolate brown eyes in his mother's direction.

"She does !" He took a few deep breaths. Wade, who like Bonnie and Gerry shared their mother's porcelain complexion, began turning a deep shade of red. " The mother-fucker hit her! I know he did!" Wade's right hand closed around the handle of his knife. "I'm going to kill him. I'm going to fucking kill him."

"Wade, calm down", Aimee said , trying to placate him. She had placed her hand over his clenched fist. " You don't know what happened. Do not jump to conclusions."

"Jump to conclusions ?! Aimee, he's physically hurt her before ! I was there ! I SAW it !"

"I hit her", Belle said in a calm voice to the foursome seated near her. They all sat in silence. Ella and Wade's mouths were open and identically aghast.

"What? You hit her ? When ?", asked her son.

Wade turned to stare shockingly into Belle's face.

"We had a little disagreement earlier and it got a little out of hand."

Ella, with her fork frozen in midair asked, " You and my mom got into a fight? Like a real fist fight ?"

Taz threw his napkin onto his plate and covered his eyes in mortification. He knew there was bad blood between his mother-in-law and his mother. He had no idea it was this bad.

"She got in a few good licks in there too, now ", Belle said as she moved her hair away from her face to show the swelling along her jaw.

Rosie looked at Julia and shook her head. She knew this would happen. There was no way that a gathering of this many people with this many prejudices toward one another would turn out to be present. The tension all along the table was palatable. She decided that it would be up to her to take control. She clanged her knife against the crystal of her water glass.

"Everyone", she announced in a loud voice, "I would like to announce that I have asked Julia to marry me and that she has said yes."

The table erupted in cheers and joyous excitement. The tension immediately abated. Both Rosie and Julia were engulfed with hugs and kisses of congratulations. A loud pop of a champagne cork was heard. Champagne flutes arrived and were filled with ice cold Veuve Clicquot.

Scarlett rose her glass in the air. " Here's to the happy couple. Rosie and Julia, we love you both and are so excited for your happily ever after! Congratulations! " Everyone, including the kids seated at the kids table – who rose plastic cups filled with the tiniest possible sample of champagne, rose their glasses in the toast. Rosie pulled Julia into her arms and gave her a kiss. Julia had tears streaming down her face as she held on to Rosie's face with both hands and said," I love you."

"Aunt Roe, can I be a bridesmaid?", Bonnie yelled down the length of the table.

"Me too!", Ella said just as loudly as he sister.

"Me too!", added Maggie.

"Don't get any ideas over there, Mags. I'm the best woman !", said Scarlett with a smile as she walked over to Rosie and gave her a giant hug and a kiss.

"In more ways than one, sister." She answered as she rose her glass in Scarlett's direction and took a sip of wine. Scarlett puckered her lips and blew her a kiss. The celebratory mood seemed to have saved the day.

Except for the one black cloud at the table. Rhett's mother was the only one without elation. Instead, she looked as if she were going to be sick.

"Is this some sort of joke, Rosemary?", she asked her daughter.

"What do you mean , mama?"

"You're not really marrying Julia. This is a joke, right? You're not really one of those….. those lesbians." She whispered the word lesbian as if it was some horrible disease.

"God doesn't make mistakes", Cat quipped from the kids' table. She had confiscated the champagne that was given to her brother and younger cousins. She thought it quite inappropriate to give small children alcohol and, to protect them from this parental oversight, consumed everyone's sweet tasting champagne on top of her own. The result left her a little light headed and giggly.

Rosie looked as though the wind had been taken out of her sails. She felt instant deflation. She flopped back against the fabric backing of the dining room chair in disappointment. Julia grabbed her hand and gave it a little squeeze. It gave Rosie all the strength she needed to say what she had to say. What she had been bottling up for a long time.

"Mom, I'm gay. Julia and I have been living together, as LOVERS, for years. I'm totally in love with this woman and I want to marry her. I want to spend the rest of my life with her and only her", said Rosie. She brought Julia's hand up to her mouth and kissed it.

Pitty dabbed at her eyes. "That was beautiful. I never knew lesbian love was so beautiful."

Careen kicked at Suellen's legs with force. "Don't you ever give her opioids again."

Eleanor waved her hand in dismissal at the situation. "You just haven't found the right man yet, darling. If you would take my advice and lose a little weight and start acting like a lady…."

"Oh Eleanor, shut up." Scarlett's voice rang clear as a bell. "Can't you see they're happy and in love? Would it kill you to be happy for your daughter and not keep trying to change her into something she isn't?"

This was it. The showdown that had been years in the making. The gauntlet had been dropped. Mother in law against Daughter- in -law.

" This is all your fault, Scarlett", Eleanor spat.

Scarlett shook her head in disbelief. " It's my fault that Rosie had the courage to come out and publicly announce her love for Julia? Then, thank you, Eleanor. I accept the compliment."

"No. It's you and your horrific treatment of my son. You made a normal relationship between a woman and man seem so terrible to her that she'd rather be with a woman."

"Mama, really", Rhett interjected.

Scarlett stood and grabbed on to the end of the table so tightly that her knuckles turned white. "What are you talking about? My horrific treatment of HIM! Your son has been unfaithful to me throughout our ENTIRE marriage!"

"And you were totally innocent the whole time, Scarlett? I find that hard to believe." Eleanor belted back.

"Eleanor, if you want to know the one woman who has treated your son horribly, I suggest you take a good look in the mirror. You are the one who caused his warped view of marriage. Your love for your children, for ALL of them, comes with conditions. They never know where they stand with you. You love them when it's convenient for you and ignore them when they don't act according to your wishes. You love Rhett only after his father dies – AFTER you abandoned him to a life on the streets; you love Rosie only if she conforms to your wishes and denies who she is as a person, and you don't even consider Ross at all. You are sick and narcissistic and you alone are responsible for the damage done to Rhett, not me."

The people at the table sat in silence, swinging their heads from side to side as if they were watching a tennis match. Scarlett = 1 Eleanor = 0

Eleanor rose from her seat and pointed a scrawny finger at her daughter-in-law. "Don't you dare lecture me on my relationship with my children. You think you are mother of the year? I've never seen a worse mother. My grandchildren run wild. They're almost feral ! One thinks he's girl, one is allowed to live in her own fantasy land, one runs off and gets married, one couldn't wait to get away from you and moved up north, and that one" she said as she pointed at Bonnie " is well on her way to ending up just like you."

"Why does everyone say that as if it's a bad thing?", Bonnie questioned Beau in a whisper.

"My children are amazing, Eleanor. Not perfect. Amazing. I'm constantly amazed at who they are and who they are growing to be. I'm proud that Wade went away to college and found an amazing woman to marry. I'm proud that Ella's heart is so big that she couldn't live one more second without marrying the man she fell in love with. Gerry is five and so what if he likes the color pink and plays with dolls? I'm proud that he's sweet and compassionate. And if one day he comes to me and tells me that he's transgendered, I'd still be proud of him. I'm extremely proud that Bonnie is like me. I happen to think that is a good thing in many ways. And Cat", she swallowed down her tears as she looked over at her special little girl. "I'm overwhelmed with pride to be Cat's mother. And I can't tell you how happy I am that Cat lives in what you call "a fantasy world" instead of in a reality filled with ignorant people like you. This the last time you come into my house and insult me and my children. The very last. Get your shit and get out of my house."

Eleanor looked at Rhett. She wanted him to stand up to Scarlett and tell her that this was his house too. That she couldn't just throw his mother out of his house. Instead, he announced that he would be leaving as well. "Let's go mother. I've lost my appetite for everything at this table."

STW

"You're sure you don't want me to stay and help you with the dishes?" Phillipe asked before retiring to bed.

Scarlett closed her eyes and shook her head. "No, We've got it. Thanks anyway."

Phillipe peered around the wall separating the dining room from the kitchen. Richard was up to his elbows in soap suds.

"Et cet homme? Est-ce sage, Katie?"

"He speaks French fluently, you know. And yes, I will be fine."

He gave her a kiss on top of her head and said softly, "Bonne nuit, mon petit."

"Good night, dad."

Phillipe froze. She had just called him dad. His heart began beating so quickly he thought he might be having a heart attack. Did she say it on accident? He didn't care - she still said it. He didn't want to ruin it; to call it to her attention and embarrass her even. Instead, he walked up the stairs with a big smile on his face and a warm feeling in his heart.

Dad. His daughter had called him dad.

Scarlett walked into the kitchen and stood next to Richard as he towel dried her dishes. Her good china was not dishwasher safe and required hand washing. She politely declined everyone's suggestion of helping her clean up. She just wanted to be left alone. Only her father and Richard refused to allow her to dismiss them. Though she protested initially, she was glad they were there. They didn't talk to her much. They only asked her simple questions related to the location of a particular server or glass of crystal. Who knew that cleaning her kitchen would be so relaxing.

"I'm sorry your first American holiday was ruined." She handed Richard a crystal wine glass.

"Don't apologize. It was very memorable", he said while tucking the towel into the hollow of the glass. He meant to sound jovial, but she didn't laugh. He tried to steer the conversation into safer waters.

"Phillipe said he was your father"

She reached into the soapy water to gather up various pieces of cutlery. "He's my biological father, yes."

" You look just like him. And Frank, he is?"

"My first husband and Ella's father."

"And your oldest son's father?"

"Is dead."

"And Rhett is …"

" My current estranged husband and the father of my other four children."

Richard counted in his head. Four? The one that looked like her, the one that looked like him, and Gerry. That was three. Four?

She seemed to sense his thoughts. " Our son R.J. died soon after his birth."

Richard took the forks from her hand and dried them. They were real silver; heavy and engraved with the letter B.

"That's some family tree", he said.

Scarlett wanted to change the subject. She didn't want to go through the complex matrix of how she was related to everyone sitting at the dining room table earlier in the day. She didn't want to think about what had transpired at all.

"You know, we never opened the wine you brought. The kids are happily playing upstairs. Want to join me in a glass or two? I have Young Frankenstein on Blue Ray", she said teasingly.

Richard smiled and said that he'd love to. They finished the dishes and put them away. Scarlett grabbed two glasses that were drying in the dry rack and a cork screw. "Grab the bottle. We can watch it in the media room upstairs."

Richard was reluctant to comment on the grandeur of Scarlett's home. To be honest, the obvious display of their wealth made him a bit uncomfortable. Walking through the home made it clear. Scarlett wasn't just rich, she was outrageously rich. American rich. He wondered how much money she and Rhett really had, it had to be millions. She had mentioned to him a couple of things about her marriage and the current situation she and her husband were in. He had heard her say that there was no legal documentation that protected their assets prior to the marriage . If they divorced, she would walk away with more money than he had ever imagined.

The media room looked like a mini movie theater complete with plush leather seats and little lights that ran along the floor. There were professionally framed movie posters along the walls and a full bar and snack area against the back wall. Completing the ambiance of the room were red, velvet curtains that hung alongside the massive screen.

Richard looked over at Scarlett as she struggled with the projection remote. She pulled out a pair of broken and mangled glasses and put them on her face. She looked at Richard and they both laughed.

"Something tells me that you don't spend much time in here.", he said as he walked over to where she was standing and tried to help her decipher the buttons and cords.

"No, I do. It's just that I usually have a member of my…..never mind." He knew she was about to say her staff. The woman had staff.

Richard took her hand in his. "Don't be ashamed of your wealth, Scarlett. You should be proud of all you've accomplished."

"What have I accomplished, Richard? Lots of money? Fancy cars? Expensive jewelry? What does any of that even matter? You heard my mother in law today. I'm a failure where it counts. My husband would rather be with other woman than me and my kids run wild. "

He ran the back of his fingers against her cheek. She winced a little. Even his feather-light touches alerted her to the tenderness of the bruise that had formed on her cheek. " Don't ever say that, Scarlett. You are amazing." His eyes went to her lips as he whispered, " so very amazing."

Their faces were almost touching, they were so close. She lowered her eyes to his lips and slowly lifted them to meet his eyes. She could see that he was beginning to breathe faster; taking in large amounts of air in as he looked at her. His flushed cheeks and nervous pulse told her all she needed to know. He wanted her.

"Kiss me, Richard", she whispered. "Please."

His kiss was soft at first. Gentle in a way that Rhett's never were. Rhett's kisses were savage. He didn't just kiss her , he devoured her. Richard's kisses were slower and sensual. His mouth slowly drank hers in with languid movements of his tongue against hers. As their kiss grew frantic, she knew she had two options: take him to her bed or stop. Begrudgingly, she stopped kissing him and laid her head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and said, " I've been wanting to do that for a very long time."

"Me too", she answered. She was being completely honest. She wanted him to kiss her. She welcomed it and enjoyed it. She even wanted more. She closed her eyes as she realized for the first time how much danger her marriage was really in.


	27. Chapter 27

" The upcoming pageant is a special production where all of our kinders will have the opportunity to shine." Quinn Stacy directed her comment to the mothers she secretly called the 'eager beavers'; those over the top mothers that believed that their child was exceptionally gifted and deserved special treatment.

She had to feign interest every time she was trapped into a conversation with one of these mothers. She smiled and nodded at every story featuring their little darling as the best and the brightest. For twenty six minutes this afternoon she had to listen Evelyn Martin drone on and on about her Finn's discerning palate.

" He has an affinity for rich sauces. I mean, tell me seriously, what other five year old has such a distinguished taste for fine food? We're taking him to Italy over the holidays, did I tell you?"

Quinn wanted so badly to say that she had noticed Finn's discerning palate in class almost on a daily basis. He was the worst booger eater she had in a long time. But she just smiled and agreed. She desperately needed a cigarette and the faster this conversation ended , the faster she could fill her lungs with poisonous nicotine and relax.

" We're going to be drawing names from a hat to determine who plays which part. As parents, your job will be to come up with a costume for your child."

The adults squirmed uncomfortably in the little plastic chairs, mumbling their disapproval of this fair way of assigning roles. Loretta Callias' mother stated loudly that her daughter was a professional actress and should be given a larger role. Wynter Polis' father was nodding to sleep and beginning to snore, while Carter Evan's very pregnant mother has risen from her seat and began pacing the floor, swaying her hips from side to side.

"Parents, please be creative in choosing a costume as well. Costumes do not need to be elaborate designer pieces." Quinn looked over at Mrs. St. Germin as if to say, I'm directing this comment to you.

"We encourage you to involve your child in this process too", said Greg Whiting, the sole male teacher in the early childhood wing of the school.

Quinn could see the dangerous cougar mothers melt as he spoke. She couldn't blame them. Greg was gorgeous. Tall and muscular with deep brown eyes that matched the color of his skin, he was a rock star at this school. He was loved by all the kids….and the parents….and the teachers...and the administration…..and Quinn. Too bad he didn't even know she was alive. These over forty divorcées preened and poised themselves in front of him like actors in a soft core porn film. How could he have seen plain, little old Quinn past them?

"We're passing around a contact list for all the parents to sign. We're also accepting donations, so if you feel inclined to be generous, we'd be very grateful."

"They should be grateful for the amount of tuition we pay", someone murmured as they parents and teachers began mingling over the provided cookies and punch. Scarlett took out her phone and checked for messages from Rhett. He was supposed to meet her over forty minutes ago.

"Mrs. Butler?", Quinn touched her lightly on the sleeve. " Do you have a minute?"

Scarlett silenced her phone and shoved in into her purse. " Of course. Is everything alright?"

Quinn shifted nervously. Scarlett Butler was achingly beautiful. She was nothing like the plastic human blow up dolls that followed Greg around. What must it be like, Quinn asked herself, to look like that ? To possess those eyes? Her hair was so black and her skin so pale. Her eyes were magnificent in contrast. Gerry had inherited this beauty from his mother. Even at five, you could already see that one day he would turn into a beautiful man.

"Would you mind if we talked in the hall ?"

Scarlett followed her into the darkened hallway. The nauseating smell of lemon scented cleanser did a poor job of masking the powerful smell of urine coming from the boy's bathroom and made her wrinkle her nose.

"Gerry mentioned to me that you and Mr. Butler were no longer living together and that he had two houses now."

Scarlett nodded in defeat.

"He's talked about it in class a few times. Nothing bad, mind you. But I thought it best to tell you. I've found that when one of my students' parents are getting divorced.."

"We're not getting a divorce." She shut that down immediately. She was not going to discuss her marital problems with a girl young enough to be her daughter in the hallway of her son's school.

"Of course, I meant…" It was Quinn's turn to shift uncomfortably.

Scarlett did not give Quinn the chance to continue. "My husband and I have separated, that's all. Typically, he goes to his father's every Wednesday and every other weekend. It's been an adjustment for us all. And in the future, I'd really appreciate if you let us, his parents, be the ones to discuss this with him."

There, thought Scarlett. This is none of your fucking business, little girl.

"I just told him that sometimes mommies and daddies decide to live in separate houses and that it was not his fault and that you both loved him very much." Quinn really did look as though she had Gerry's best interest in mind. Why am I such a fucking bitch?, she chastised herself.

"Thank you and I'm sorry for biting your head off just now", Scarlett said softly as she cast her eyes downward. "Do you think we should have him in therapy or have him talk to someone? He doesn't seemed too phased by it. All he ever talks about is the room he has at Daddy's that is filled with toys. Have you noticed anything I should be concerned about?"

"Oh, no, no. He's fine. I didn't mean to make you worry. It's just that we have a lot of students that separate their time between parents and know that sometimes it makes scheduling a bit tricky. I'm sorry for my crappy delivery. You can see now why I communicate best with children. Would you like me to include Mr. Butler on our communications independently from you? Just so you both have up to date info from the school is what I'm trying to say."

That stung Scarlett. They had always been one entity: The Butlers. One email for the both of them.

To the parents of Gerald Samuel Butler. Would they now be sent two copies, both of them saying : To the parent (singular) of Gerald Samuel Butler ?

Scarlett composed herself quickly. "That would be a good idea. Thank you, Ms. Stacy."

"Please, call me Quinn."

"Thank you, Quinn." She had not invited Quinn to call her Scarlett. She was still the "other woman" in Gerry's life after all.

Quinn walked back inside, groaning inwardly at the prospect of having to talk to Shannon O' Banyon's father. He always cornered Quinn at these meeting and found reasons to have extended conversations with her so that he could ogle her breasts. She could see him eyeing her through the small glass window in the door before she walked in. "They don't pay me enough for this", she said to herself before planting a fake smile on her face.

" I brought you a cup of punch", Richard said as he slid out of the door and into the hallways. "I hope there's a doctor in there because this stuff's enough to send someone into a diabetic coma."

Scarlett laughed quietly as she sipped the pink beverage. " Christine Brett-Johnson over there is an orthodontist."

"Any coroners ?"

She shook her head no. " You see Charlotte Jackson's father over there, the one who kept falling asleep? He's so ancient that he probably farts dust. I'm sure Mrs. Jackson knows how to resuscitate the dead, so she might be able to help."

"How old is he ?" Richard asked. He had stuck his foot in his mouth earlier when he assumed the man was Charlotte's grandfather.

"Older than Rhett. So over sixty, I'm sure."

Richard nodded and smiled. Richard hated Rhett Butler. Truly hated him. Of course he'd never mention it to Scarlett. To her, he kept Rhett's name out his mouth totally. As far as she was concerned, Rhett was off topic and Richard respected that. Once their relationship had left the platonic stage, Scarlett had never again discussed her marriage or the present situation she was in to him. When she seemed stressed or looked as if she'd been crying, Richard would comfort her and only ask her if she was okay. He never pressed for more details.

Honestly though, he was glad that she didn't wallow in the ashes of her broken marriage or feel the need to cry on Richard's shoulder about her doomed marriage. He felt confident in that she only wanted to be in the moment with him and leave Rhett in the past. He loved how she'd relax into his embrace and talk to him about her day, eventually leaning her head back for him to kiss her. But every now and then he would notice a change in her green eyes. It was almost as if they went blank or misted over with memories of Rhett. She would melt into Richard's lap, allow him to kiss her, kiss him back even, flirt and bat her eyelashes at him, but he knew that she still loved her husband and that no matter how much he had hurt and betrayed her, she still held out hope that her marriage would work. He had tried to prevent himself from getting in too deep with her, reminding himself that she wasn't really a free woman. He told himself this every day - to the point of it becoming like a mantra to him. But it was proving to be useless. There was no denying it. No matter how hard he tried, he was falling in love with her.

She licked the residue of the sugary liquid of her lips and smiled at him with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Did I tell you how beautiful you look tonight ?" Richard asked as he closed the space between them in the shadows of the empty hall. He took her left hand in his and kissed it. She could smell the sweetness of his breath: peppermint mixed with something akin to sugar cookies.

"Yes", she said coquettishly, " but there's no harm in telling me again."

"You're beautiful. It was torture being away from you in that room. Just looking at you and thinking dirty thoughts. I couldn't wait to touch you", he whispered before capturing her lips with his own.

"You taste delicious too", he said as the tasted the sugar on her lips and tongue.

"Of course I do. I'm a southern lady. Made completely out of sweet tea and honey." She said it with a forced syrupy-sweet southern drawl that made him crazy. Richard went firmly rigid whenever she spoke like this. A woman with a southern accent was kryptonite to many a British gentleman.

Scarlett could feel his desire as he pressed himself against her. It made her smile, this new naughtiness that had become part of her lifestyle. It had been two weeks since Thanksgiving. Fourteen days. And in those fourteen days, she and Richard had repeatedly kissed, or as Bonnie would say- 'made out' , more times than she could count. They had dinner five times, went to the movies twice – where they held hands each time, had one romantic impromptu picnic where she fell asleep in his arms, and one very inappropriate business meeting that went against all known ethical laws in business.

She tried to reason with herself that she wasn't doing anything wrong. Her husband was and still was seeing other women. She was plagued with nightmares about M.S. and what they did together. She exhibited all of her self-restraint in not demanding the truth about it from Rhett. It was against her very nature not to succumb to the rage that filled her petite, little body.

Her enormous and uncharacteristic willpower came from the fact that she was watching them from the shadows. Her brilliant hacker had infiltrated all systems at Butler enterprises , both business and personal, and blind copied Scarlett on every single interaction made by Rhett. The second Rhett and M.S. communicated, she would know. She hadn't planned on what she'd do next after she got her hands on that information. She'd think about that tomorrow. Today though, she was quietly waiting for her moment to arrive.

The thoughts of her husband making love to another woman made her reason that her actions with Richard were completely justified. Rhett had cheated on her for decades. Decades. He deserved everything he got. She was entitled to have her own experience with a lover. What's good for the goose is good for the gander, right?

But still, the overwhelming guilt she felt about it made her feel physically ill. She loved Rhett. Loved him more than she could even put into words. Even the massive hurts he had caused her couldn't erase that. But she liked being with Richard too. She gloried in the attention he gave her. He made her smile and feel almost a little bit happy. With him, she felt beautiful, smart, and desired. It was the same old adage, she supposed. She wanted to have her cake and eat it too.

She knew her actions would certainly have consequences. Richard had said from the beginning that there were no strings attached but she wondered if that could really be the case. Obviously there was something more than lust and desire between them. What if it grew into something too big to ignore? And what would happen if she and Rhett decided to get back together? She'd have to tell him about her indiscretions with Richard. Even though she and Richard hadn't had sex, had she passed the point of no return? Could she go back after this ? This was the first time she had ever been unfaithful during their marriage. It was scary, this silky and sensuous path of infidelity. And what if she fell in love with Richard? What if she and Richard made love and she turned up pregnant? After all, Rhett had been the one to get a vasectomy. She could still have children. The thought was too horrible to even think about. But the one fact that scared her the most was that she was enjoying the hell out of it.

"Let's go away for the weekend. Just you and me", he asked as he leaned his forehead against hers. He had asked her this before. She always had some excuse why she couldn't go. She knew what would happen if they went away together. What was left of her resolve would evaporate and they'd end up naked with their limbs entwined on the plush bed of eternal damnation.

She placed a little kiss on his nose. " I can't this weekend. But soon. I promise."

And damn her cheating soul, she meant it.

STW

Rhett turned into the school parking lot with a little too much force. He was running late and he cursed himself for his lack of time management. He told Scarlett that he would meet her here for 5:00 p.m. A full thirty minutes before the meeting began. They had planned to walk in together, to show that they still were a united team for the sake of their children. She had told him that the word was out about them and that malicious tongues were spreading rumors about the state of their marriage. He imagined that it was open season on her now. Men, and even some women, would be chomping at the bit for a taste of her. The fact that she expressed relief at his suggestion that they arrive together was a good sign. But once again he had disappointed her.

He felt like a complete ass because of the way he acted on Thanksgiving. He went to her the next day, heart in hand, and apologized to her profusely. He apologized for his mother, for what she said, for his reaction, the way he accused her. She had dismissed him with a wave of her hand, saying that it was no big deal ; telling him that she had already forgotten about it, but he knew better. She was hurt by his actions, even if she didn't show it. His behavior had cut even further into her fragile heart. He willed her to scream at him, to hurl insults, blunt objects, creative vulgarities in his direction. Those actions he anticipated. They were aspects central to her passionate nature. This, this indifference she now had, this was foreign and told Rhett that she had lost that passionate drive when it came to him –and when it came to them.

He could feel the sweat gathering in his armpits as he searched in vain for a parking spot. He scanned among the luxury vehicles for any opening and spotted Scarlett's Bentley. She was already here. Of course she was. For all his accusations about her terrible parenting choices, she was undoubtably the better parent. She had questionable organizational skills, that was for sure. He had learned early on in their marriage that trying to find anything in her purse or office was a futile endeavor. But she was never late for a parent teacher meeting, never missed a soccer game, knew the name of every teacher, doctor, friend, and coach. She could spit out kids' blood types, likes, interests, hobbies, favorite foods, and methods of punishment that worked best. What could Rhett do? He could buy them things, spoil them, That was all.

Rhett parked in what he was certain was a tow away zone. He sprung out of car, parking violations be damned, and ran into the school. He followed the colorful posters that directed all Kinder parents to the library for the pageant meeting and slowed his pace to a brisk walk as he followed the trophy cases and portraits along the wall of school founders and supporters. He stopped for a moment as he approached the last oil painting. He knew that smile, those eyes, that sweet round face. Melanie. How different would things be if she were here, he wondered.

As he turned the corner of the long hallway, he stopped dead in his tracks. Outside of the library, leaning against the wall, and partially hidden by shadows, stood his wife kissing Richard Fenton.

Somehow Rhett found himself back in his car. He could hear the whooshing sound of blood rushing in his ears. His body felt as though it were on fire. His eyes were staring ahead, wild and unblinking. A million and one thoughts ran through his head. She was kissing another man. His wife was kissing another man. A sharp pain stabbed him in the chest. He grabbed at the fabric of his shirt as another one went racing through him. Sweat began to bead on his forehead. He was freezing. His breath began coming in sporadic pants. I'm dying, he thought. I'm having a heart attack. He tried reaching for his phone, to call 911 – anyone who could help him, but he couldn't form lucid thoughts. He was confused. He thought about his kids. His Bonnie, his Cat, and about poor little Gerry. They'd grow up without him. He pictured their sad, little faces standing around as his coffin was lowered into the ground. Scarlett would be weeping too, looking gorgeous in a form fitting black dress that showed off her perfect ass and tits…..that he paid for.

No, he reasoned with himself. No, she'd be there – somewhere- but she wouldn't be crying. She'd probably be leaning up against some stranger's headstone, fucking Fenton. She'd be happy he was dead. All her problems would be solved. He'd died and left her a billionaire. She'd live out the rest her life swimming in his riches with her pretty-boy British boyfriend, spending his hard earned money on stupid frivolous things like a fifty grand dog bed and dozens of bottles of Cristal to wash her hair in. Fuck her! He was glad he was dying like this: outside in the cold while she was inside publicly kissing another man. Serves her right! It's your fault Scarlett, he thought.

Parents began filtering out of the school's front doors and pulled him from his supposed heart-attack. His breathing began slowing to normal and the pains in his chest were subsiding. He had a panic attack. The sheer embarrassment of having a panic attack in the first place left him mortified. He blamed this all on Dilcey. She insisted on him getting in touch with his feelings. She said that if he any hope at all of fixing his family he'd have to learn to be honest with himself about what he felt and to be honest with Scarlett.

 _"It's obvious that baiting Scarlett into a fight is not working in your favor. Why don't you try a new tactic and just listen when she talks. Don't get defensive, just listen."_

 _"How am I supposed to listen to her talk when her initial response is one of violence?"_

 _"When she sees that you're calm , she'll respond with calmness. "_

 _"Are we talking about the same woman, Dilcey? Scarlett O' Hara ? You know, the one who threw a vase at my head when we first met? The one who gave me this scar", he'd said as he pointed to the red, raised flesh under his right eye._

 _"Let's just try anyway, okay?"_

A tapping noise came from his window. "It's over. But thanks for coming anyway."

He lowered his window to face his wife.

She wrapped herself in the folds of her coat and bounced a little as she spoke to him. The weather had dropped a few degrees since earlier. He noticed that her nose and cheeks were pink, making her look impossibly young and innocent. What was this voo-doo spell she had over him? Moments ago he wanted to kill her. To make her feel unyielding shame and torment. And now, all he wanted to do was grab her and kiss her. To beg at her feet for forgiveness.

He wondered if there were other men and women like him – poor saps that were brainwashed by the lovely object of their attraction. Probably so.

"Rhett? Did you hear me ?"

"What? Oh, yeah. Sorry I missed it. I was caught in traffic." Forgive me, Scarlett. I love you. Please let me come home, he wanted to add. "Hey, why don't I take you to dinner and you can tell me all about it." He said instead.

Alright Dilcey, let's see if this works….

She seemed to be debating his suggestion. It irritated him to no end that she was questioning if it was a good idea to go to dinner with her husband. He calmed himself with three deep, calming breaths Dilcey had instructed him to do and tried to appear relaxed as she made her decision.

She smiled at him. A genuine smile, dimples and all. " I'd love to. We can talk about the kids' Christmas break too. There's no way I'm having a repeat of Thanksgiving, so we should figure out the schedule. Let me just…..Richard !" She called out.

Rhett pulse began to accelerate. Did she have to ask his permission to have dinner with him?!

In for three, out for three. In for three, out for three.

"Would you mind taking Gerry to soccer practice with you and Luke?" she asked as he approached Rhett's car.

"We're going to dinner", Rhett added gruffly.

My wife. Mine. You got that? MINE. She's having dinner with me. Her HUSBAND. Rhett hoped Richard got the message.

If he did, he didn't let on. Richard simply ignored the bait and thrust his hand towards Rhett. "Great to see you again, Rhett." He smiled as he spoke to Scarlett. Rhett wanted to jump out of the car and rip the mother fucker's throat out. "Of course I don't mind. Do you need me to drop him off afterwards as well?"

"That would be great, thanks." Rhett answered before Scarlett even had a chance to open her mouth.

"No problem. Enjoy your evening."

Rhett noticed how he lingered a bit. He silently dared Richard to try and kiss her in front of him. He'd kill him. He'd kill him and claim momentary insanity. His eyes darted to the ice scraper sat in the pocket of his driver's side door. He fantasized about taking the hard plastic and jamming it into Richard's chest.

" Thank you so much, Richard. Call me later?" It was a demand, not a question that Rhett had NOT failed to notice.

Rhett noticed that her forearm moved in conjunction with Richard's. He had reached for her hand…

In for three, out for three. In for three, out for three.

"Do you want to ride with me or follow in your own car?" He heard his voice come out a little unsteady.

In for three, out for three. In for three, out for three.

"Whichever's easiest" she answered as she watched Richard walk away. She gave a little smile as she gazed. Rhett turned his head to see Richard staring back at her.

In for three, out for three. In for three, out for three.

STW

"Beau, please", Bonnie whimpered near his ear.

Beau let out an air of frustration. This plea of desperation of hers was destroying his will power. " No, Bonnie. Not yet."

She rubbed her body against his wantonly. " Please don't tell me no", she breathed. " I know you want me. Why fight it?"

She began her quest to lose her virginity two weeks ago with a shy smile and soft words. "Beau. I want you to be my first. My first and only." She then resorted to playfulness. " I missed you today. If you want, I can show you just how much", she'd say with a wink. When that too proved fruitless, she resorted to angry demands. "I thought you loved me! Are you that repulsed by me that you won't have sex with me ?!" Now, with all her options exhausted, she used blatant seduction. He had asked her suspiciously about where she learned to entice men. She laughed and reminded him who her mother was.

She leaned away from him began to unbutton his shirt, placing soft little kisses down the length of his smooth sternum. He ran his fingers through the strands of her dark hair and pulled her face up to look at him. Her eyes shone like sapphires against the sunlight from the setting sun filtering in through the blinds in the windows.

"Beau, I love you. I'll never love anyone else. Please. Show me how much you love me."

Beau had once asked his father what was about his Aunt Scarlett that made him stray from his mother. He was in high school at the time and had just learned of the complicated relationship his father had with his favorite aunt. He was furious, more so at him than her, that they conducted an illicit affair right under his perfect mother's nose. He would never forget the look that came upon his father's face when he asked him. A look that told not only of his shame, but also revealed that he still harbored non-platonic feelings for Scarlett.

 _"She's like a magnet, like some electric force that draws me in so tightly that I can't move. I'm hopeless around her. I can't think straight. It's like all my senses are flooded at once. Her smile, her eyes, the way she smells, her temper and stubbornness, her vulnerability. When I'm alone with her for too long I lose my grip on reality. I lose myself…"_

Back then, Beau didn't understand. He could not comprehend how a woman , even one as beautiful as his Aunt Scarlett, could make his father do something so reprehensive as to have an affair on a good and loving wife.

Now, as he stood en flagrente with the daughter of the same raven haired temptress that had lured his father away so many years ago, he understood.

Beau could feel the glide of her smooth tongue as she kissed him further and further down. He reached down and curled his fingers in her hair. Her fingers felt very cold as they slipped into the waist band of his jeans and worked the stiff denim down his legs. "Bonnie", he breathed.

Neither of them heard the front door to the office open.

"Thanks for stopping with me, I just need to grab my…..BONNIE!" Scarlett dropped her keys and phone to the floor with a loud clang and brought both of her hands to her face. "What are you doing ?!"

Rhett's frozen body was next to her. His tanned face had turned grey as he stood there shaking in anger. His fists were balled up tightly at his sides.

Beau forcefully yanked up his pants, ignoring the pain caused by his zipper when its teeth grazed the side of his erect penis. "Aunt Scarlett, I can explain."

Scarlett said nothing. She shuffled her feet towards the nearest table and placed her right hand on top if it. She was confused at what her next plan of action should be. She had just walked in on her daughter giving , or about to giver, her nephew, Bonnie's cousin, a blow job. She cast a glance at her daughter and nephew. She shook her head slightly. " What…", she began.

"I love him. We're in love." Bonnie interjected. Her small, delicate fingers interlaced with Beau's. He felt ashamed all of a sudden. He could feel his aunt's eyes on him and could not bring himself to meet them.

Rhett's mutism was overcome in that instant. The greyness of his face turned an angry red. "The hell you are ! You are NOT in a relationship with Beau, little girl. I will NEVER allow it!"

"I'm sorry, Daddy, but I am and there's not a lot you can do about it." Bonnie said as she stuck out her chin in defiance. He was reminded of Mammy's words to him when Bonnie was about four and was given free reign over the house. Rhett delighted in the way his pint-sized princess demanded her wishes be followed.

 _"Aw, Mammy, but look how cute she is though. How can I resist her with those sweet cheeks and her pouty bottom lip stuck out?"_

 _"This might be cute right now but wait until she's sixteen. It won't be so cute then. Mark my words, Rhett."_

Scarlett sat down in the nearby chair and placed her palms on her knees. She drew in a deep breath. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was open then closed. " How long has this been going on ?"

"Almost five months", her daughter answered.

"Five months", Scarlett repeated to herself. She raised her head with conviction and looked straight into the blue eyes of her daughter. "Eugenie. Be honest with me. I promise I won't get angry. Are you two having sex?"

"What?! Sex!" Rhett's neck was a throbbing mound of flesh. His veins pulsed with violent ferocity. That feeling, that all encompassing feeling that he had tried so long to hide, the one that had made him almost kill a cadet at West Point, the one that made him carry his wife upstairs with the intent of forcing himself on her, was gaining strength inside of him. He could feel its black tentacles spreading through his limbs. He knew that he was completely capable of killing Beau.

"Fucking Wilkes' ", he growled. " They're always trying to stick their dicks into what's mine."

Scarlett made a gasping sound. " Rhett! Seriously !"

"No, Aunt Scarlett we're not having sex and I'm not sticking my penis anywhere near her", Beau said while looking directly at Rhett. He knew his father had made some mistakes when it came to Aunt Scarlett, but he'd be damned if he would let anyone disrespect him or his family name. Wordlessly, he let Rhett know he wasn't afraid of him.

Rhett roughly ran his hand through his hair and then angrily pointed at Beau. " You were about to stick it in her mouth! That's near her !"

"Dad, please. We are not having sex. Not yet anyway."

"So you're telling me that you haven't had sex but that you're going to."

"Yes."

Scarlett closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. She couldn't make out individual voices over the sound of Bonnie and Rhett screaming at each other. She saw Rhett out of the corner of her eye. His eyes had taken on a wild crazed look. She reached out and grabbed his arm to steady him.

"You need to calm down. You're not helping the situation. And you," she pointed at her daughter, "do not say another word. You're about to give your father a stroke."

Rhett jerked his head toward her and yanked his arm away. He made a growling noise before crashing out the office door. Scarlett didn't say a word. She hoped that his absence would defuse the tension in the room.

"Aunt Scarlett. I can see why you're upset. I would be too if I were in your shoes."

Bonnie's mouth made a perfect O shape. "Beau! What are you saying?!"

"But I love her. I know it's complicated and it'll probably get even messier than this, but I love her. I love her enough that I don't care how it looks or what people will say." Beau looked at Bonnie as he spoke those last words. He could see her eyes beginning to sparkle with tears. He couldn't help but smile back at her.

Scarlett could see that he meant it. The poor, sweet boy really did love her daughter. But Bonnie was tempestuous. Who knew if what she felt was real. Bonnie was so very young. She remembered her own impulsiveness at sixteen and the consequences that followed.

"She's sixteen, Beau. Sixteen. She still sleeps with a night-light on for heaven's sake."

Bonnie's faced flushed red with embarrassment. " Way to be a hypocrite, Mom. Weren't you pregnant with Wade when you were my age ?"

"No. I was actually a year older than you and I wasn't caught trying to give Charles a blow job." Scarlett winced as she said that. Right now, it was painfully clear that her daughter was growing up.

It didn't make sense when you thought about it. All those years when they were in diapers, coloring all over the walls, crying and throwing temper tantrums, were nothing compared to the stress that came when your kids became teenagers.

Rhett's booming voice broke through the conversation as he entered the room in a torrent of anger.

"This ends right now, either your way or mine. Tell her it's over. Now", Rhett said as he pointed his pistol at Beau's head.

"Daddy! Are you crazy ?!" Bonnie yelled in hysterical fear.

Scarlett rolled her eyes at her husband's ridiculous over-reaction and slumped back in her chair.

"Mom, do something! Don't just sit there! Mom !"

"Rhett. Put down the gun, you idiot. You're not going to shoot Beau." She waved her hand in dismissal toward him. "He's all talk. Trust me, he won't shoot anyone."

Rhett cocked the bullet into the chamber. He kept his hand as level as he could. He wasn't twenty years old anymore and his shaking hands made it obviously clear. "You forget, my pet, that I was a Captain in the U.S. Navy during wartime. I have killed people before. Move away from him, Bonnie!"

Bonnie had thrown herself in front of Beau. Beau tried to shove her out of the way, but her sturdy legs held her firmly in place. " No ! If you shoot him, you'll have to shoot me too ! Mom! Do you see this ?! "

Scarlett walked directly up to the barrel of the gun. She knew it was loaded with blanks. She knew this because she put them there. Rhett liked to think that he had a secret pistol hidden in the glove compartment of his Porche. It was really quite naïve of him to think he could fool Scarlett when it came to something like this. Like all good, Southern wives, she discreetly wore the "pants" in her family. The moment she learned of the pistol, from the loose lips of sleepy husband during pillow talk after sex no less, she replaced the bullets with blanks. Removing the gun completely would only have him buying a new one.

"Rhett, you were on a ship. A boat. In the middle of the water. I doubt the Iraqis had much of a naval presence during Desert Storm. Now put the damn gun down. It's not even loaded with real bullets. I replaced them with blanks a long time ago."

Bonnie, incensed at her mother's lack of serious action at the possible murder of the man she loved, reached for her cell phone and called her sister. Real bullets or not, her father had a gun pointed at Beau.

"Ella! I need you! Right now ! Dad's going to kill Beau! He's here at the office pointing a gun at him! Please, come here quick and help me !"

Bonnie didn't end the call, but instead put the phone on speaker so that she would have a witness , albeit an audio one, in case her father did shoot Beau. You could hear the animation coming from the other end of the phone as Ella yelled instructions and told her that they were on their way.

As usual, Rhett and Scarlett were too wrapped up their argument to notice. "What do you mean? Not real bullets ? Damn it , Scarlett! How many times have I asked you not to fuck with my guns!"

Scarlett held out her hand to her husband. " Obviously, I had good reason. Our children ride in that car, you dummy. Look at you. You're threatening to shoot Beau. Now give me the gun, Rhett. You're over-reacting."

"You KNEW about this, didn't you ?"

"I assure you , I had no idea. Give me the gun."

"No ! He was forcing himself on her! You saw it!"

"Um… have you met our daughter? I highly doubt he was forcing her. If anything, it was probably the other way around. Now stop this. We both know that the only person in this room with the balls to kill another person is me. Give. Me. The. Gun. Right. Now. "

Just as Rhett was handing over the pistol, the office door flew open to reveal a swarm of people. Ella, Taz, Wade, and Aimee rushed into the already highly charged scene.

Looking back, Rhett could see why Wade reacted the way he did. He had been handing over the gun to Scarlett, barrel first. No wonder that he thought Rhett was pointing a loaded pistol at his mother.

Seeing this, Wade, as if demon-possessed, rushed across the floor and punched Rhett hard in the face. Rhett fell instantly to the floor, cradling his face as Wade continued to pummel his step-father with rage-filled blows to his upper body and head.

"Wade! No !" Scarlett screamed.

He ignored them all; all their screams . His mother, his sisters, his cousin. This was a long time coming. He wanted to kill Rhett. He'd hoped that he would. This was nothing less than Rhett deserved. Each time his fists met with Rhett's body, Wade called out the significance in his mind.

 _This is for cheating on my mother._

 _This is for all the times you hurt her and made her cry._

 _This is for R.J._

 _This is for throwing Ella out of the house._

 _This is for pulling a gun on Beau._

 _This is for pointing it at my mother._

He felt arms forcing him back. Voices were screaming in his ears, telling him to stop. He didn't stop. He couldn't. It was only when his mother wedged her way between him and Rhett and threw herself over her husband that Wade allowed himself to be pulled back. Wade staggered a little and looked at his fist. It was covered in blood. Whether it was his own or Rhett's , he couldn't determine. One look at Rhett told him that it was probably the latter.

"Rhett. Rhett, open your eyes and look at me. Rhett. Look at me. Stay with me, okay." Scarlett was calm as she spoke to him. His eyes fluttered open for a brief moment and then closed. Wade had pummeled him within an inch of his life. She could hear Wade's wild ranting behind her and ignored it. Right now, Rhett needed her full attention.

" Beau", she turned to her nephew as she cradled Rhett's head in her lap. "I need you to restrain Wade and prevent him from leaving. He cannot be on the roads in this state."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Ella, call 9-1-1 and tell them we need an ambulance at 421 Oak Street. The lumber office. Tell them that there has been an accident. Bonnie, go get me a lot of ice and a towel and a bowl full of water."

Scarlett's voice remained calm as she gave out direct orders. Bonnie returned with a towel full of globs of drippy wet ice. She took the ice from Bonnie and applied it to Rhett's forehead.

Aimee was awed by her future mother -in- law's decorum. She was an enigma. Just when you thought you knew all there was to know about her, something new appeared. She watched as Scarlett slowly wiped his forehead, speaking soothing words to him. Rhett raised his left hand and placed it on hers.

"Shhh, it's alright. I'm right here." She said to him.

Ella rushed to her mother's side with her phone pressed to her ear. " Mama, they want to know if he's consci…."Ella slurred the word as she dropped the phone from her ear and tumbled to the ground.

"Fuck", Scarlett breathed. Ella could not handle the sight of blood. She never could. When Ella started her period at thirteen, Scarlett thought that she would have to sedate her daughter to calm her down enough so she could explain to her that she wasn't dying.

"Taz! Ella's fainted.", She alerted her son in law to attend to his wife. "Wipe her cheeks with some cold water. She'll come too in a bit. Blood makes her woozy."

"I know", he said as he splashed water on his wife's pale cheeks. "Baby", he softly said. "Come back to me."

"Is there anything I can do?" Aimee asked Scarlett.

Scarlett turned and looked at her future daughter in law. She tucked a strand of black hair behind her ear leaving a streak of blood on her cheek. "You sure you want to join this family?" She gestured to their surroundings with her hand. "As you can see, we give new meaning to the word dysfunctional."

STW

Rhett could hear her voice. Those smooth, Georgian drawls he had heard for more than two decades woke him. He must have been given a sedative because he couldn't remember how he got to what he assumed was the hospital emergency room. He didn't open his eyes as she spoke. She was talking in hushed tones to someone about the medicine he was taking. She rattled off the names , the dosages, and the frequency. He felt a flush of embarrassment when she mentioned that he took Viagra. She recited his age, weight, height, blood type, the date of his last tetanus shot. Rhett was taken aback by how well his wife knew him.

Guilt began to take a solid form in his stomach. If asked about Scarlett's vitals, he could tell you that she was 39 years old, 5'4, and weighed somewhere in the range of 105-110 pounds. Blood type? Names and dosages of medications? Allergies to medications? He hadn't a clue. Come to think of it, he didn't know a lot about her. What was her favorite cereal? Her favorite color? Smell? Book ? Film ? He couldn't say.

"Do you know when his last EKG was?" The voice asked.

"Almost six months ago. It was normal. He does have high cholesterol but it doesn't require medication, just small changes to his diet."

Rhett was about to open his eyes when he heard the voice ask, " Marital status?"

"Married."

Peace descended upon him. She said married. Not separated. But married. He didn't care how much his body hurt. He could have broken every single bone in his body and still felt the buoyancy of elation at her declaration of matrimony. This meant that there was hope. His marriage still had a fighting chance. He vowed there and then that he would do whatever it took to get her back. He'd follow every stupid suggestion Dilcey gave him. He'd buy Gerry an entire new pink wardrobe if that's what it took. He'd crawl on his belly in penance to Wade and Ella. He'd read every book, learn all he could about autism. He was not giving up hope on her. On them. He wouldn't push her, bait her, or demand things of her. He would give her all the time she needed. This would end up being just another link in the chain that made them…well, them. He would even overlook her indiscretions with Richard. He didn't see making her forget him as much of a problem anyway. Knowing Scarlett, her actions with Richard were designed to make him jealous.

Rhett suppressed a smile that he felt spreading across his face. He wasn't ready for her to know he was awake yet. Eavesdroppers often hear highly entertaining and instructive things*.

"Well, well, well. I heard the last name Butler and thought it was you, not Rhett." Gordon moved towards Rhett's bed and into the spot that the nurse had just vacated.

"Shouldn't he be waking up soon, Gordon? He's been out for hours now."

Gordon looked at the data running across the monitors Rhett was attached to. He read through Rhett's chart. "He's fine. We gave him a pretty big dose of fentanyl. He is going to have one hell of a headache when he wakes up. What happened?"

Scarlett rubbed a finger underneath her tired eyes. " Wade hit him. Repeatedly." She covered a yawn with her hand. "When he wakes up we can go home, right?"

"Right." Gordon pressed his luck , " Is he going to your home, Scarlett?"

Rhett couldn't miss the finality in her tone of voice as she said no. "I called Rosemary. She and Julia will stay with him until he gets better."

"He might want you instead of his sister."

"Well, that's just too bad isn't it."

Rhett felt the weight of the bed shift as she sat down next to him. He could hear her voice begin to tremble. She brushed her fingertips against his forehead. " Do you what Melly told me before she died?" She didn't wait for an answer before continuing. "She told me to leave him. That he would hurt me again and again. She even suggested that I take care of Ashley and Beau." She sighed and began turning her wedding ring with her thumb. "Do you think we should get divorced, Gordon?"

Rhett clamped his mouth shut. Melly had told her to leave him? All at once, his hopes came crashing down. He wished he were dead. What was the point of living if it was without her? He was grateful that Scarlett had turned her back to him while she spoke to Gordon so that she couldn't see the tears that escaped his closed eyes.

Gordon wanted to tell her that he thought that Melly was right. To bring to her attention that the majority of hurts in her life involved Rhett. But he didn't. He knew his place. Instead he said, "That question is way above my pay grade, Scarlett."

"This is for you", said Gordon as he handed her a file folder, grateful for the opportunity to change the subject. "I hope you understand why we kept the truth from you girls. You were all so little and Gerald and Ruth thought it would be best."

As a mother, Scarlett would agree that hiding Ellen's cause of death was the best decision given the tender ages they were when she died. As the adult daughter that had spent her whole life being deceived, she was furious at being lied to for so long. She understood why the truth was kept from her when she was little, but why not tell her the truth once she grew up?

Careen was probably right when she said that they were never told the truth because no one wanted to tarnish the golden pedestal the girls held their mother on. But Scarlett and Suellen didn't want to hear reason. In a rare show of solidarity, the two sisters disagreed vehemently with their baby sister, declaring that the reason Careen was so sympathetic in her reasoning was because she was still a baby when their mother died.

Scarlett slowly opened the stiff folder to reveal her mother's actual death certificate. There it was:

Ellen Maire-Claire Robillard O' Hara

Cause of death: Drug Overdose Crack Cocaine/ Heroin

She felt numb. This one sheet of paper made it real. Her hands shook as she read through the details.

For the first time in her life, she felt anger, almost bordering in contempt, towards her mother. How could she do this to them? They were babies; her babies. What on earth could make her become an addict? Scarlett began reflecting on the memories she had of her mother. There wasn't anything that stood out to her as a warning sign. Nothing. She was the oldest child. Surely she would have noticed any strange behavior in her mother.

"Is this the entire autopsy report?" She flipped the paper over to look at the back. "It doesn't say anything about track marks or places where she might have shot up. Isn't that odd?"

Gordon shook his head no. He knew what Scarlett was doing. He saw it all the time in family members and patients that wanted so desperately for something to be not true, for something to be wrong with a diagnosis or health report. "Not necessarily. Not all addicts leave behind track marks."

Scarlett closed the folder and thanked him. She knew he hated himself for having to shatter the precious image a little girl had of her mother.

"Scarlett, this doesn't change anything. She still loved you and your sisters more than anything in this world." Gordon reached out his hand to cover hers. Her fingers were ice cold beneath his palm. She lifted her eyes to meet his.

"If she loved us so much, she would have never left us like that. You're wrong Gordon, she did not love us. Not enough."

Scarlett thanked Gordon and left the room. She had to get out of there. The air had taken on a putrid quality and was suffocating her. Her mother. Her perfect, wonderful mother had been nothing more than a junkie. Just another cracked out mother who valued her next hit over her children. What kind of mother did that, she wondered. She and Sue were little girls, Careen was still a baby. They needed her. Scarlett remembered how the three of them had slipped away quietly right before Careen walked down the aisle to marry Brent, together they shed tears for the mother who had missed so much of their lives. They had held hands and vowed that day to never let her memory die. Now, it all felt like a lie.

Memories of her mother began to fill her mind as she walked down the sterile halls on the emergency room. Games of hide and seek and dress up where she'd let Scarlett and Sue saunter around the house in her old dresses and make up, the French lullabies she'd sing to them whenever they were sick, the way her sweet scent lingered in a room long after she had left it, her soft voice as she read the Madeline books Pierre would send over, those silly raspberry kisses she blew on their little tummies, the way she tucked them in to bed each night whispering, je t'aime. She wanted to scream, to throw something, to hit someone. But she couldn't think about that now. Too many other things demanded her attention. She'd have to think about it tomorrow.

Scarlett slowly made her way to the room where Ella was being monitored. She had hit her head when she fell and had a small concussion. It was very sweet, the way Taz had cradled his wife's limp body before she was placed on the stretcher. He must have asked the poor paramedics a thousand questions.

 _"Where are you taking her?"_

 _"Will she be alright?"_

 _"I'm coming with you, okay?"_

Ella was on the bed, lying on her side with both of hands clasping her husband's. He smiled at her as he stroked her red curls with his free hand.

A realization hit her like a ton of bricks as she looked at her daughter. She'd kept a massive secret from Ella for her entire life. She and Frank had made the same choice her father and Mammy had made and for the exact same reason. They hid the ugly way Ella was created to protect her. The reason why her father and Mammy kept the truth from Scarlett and her sisters even as the grew to adulthood made perfect sense to her now.

Scarlett walked up to the bed and gently kissed her daughter's forehead. "How's my Fancy Nancy", she asked. Ever since Gerry had declared that his oldest sister looked "just like" the adorable red-headed diva, Ella was dubbed "Fancy Nancy" by her family.

"Mama" Ella turned to face her mother. " Is Uncle Rhett okay?"

Scarlett smiled at Ella's question. What she lacked in focus she more than made up in heart. She always thought of others first, always had sincere concern for their welfare. Scarlett used to think this was a trait that she inherited from Ellen. Now, though….. she wasn't so sure.

"He's fine. He's been through much worse. Remember the time I threw that big, glass egg at his head? This is nothing compared to that. He has a few cuts and bruises, that's it." Scarlett was purposely downplaying the severe head trauma that Rhett had. There was no point to distress Ella further.

Taz's eyes grew wide as he gave a slight grin. "I'm afraid to even ask . After you socked my mom on Thanksgiving, I'm scared to death of you."

The "Egg Incident" would never be forgotten. The story would never die. It would be passed down from generation to generation. It began when Rhett had patronized his wife, basically calling her nothing more than a pretty little idiot who wouldn't understand the complex business practices of a multi-million dollar company such as Butler Enterprises. It ended with a visit to the emergency room to flush out the shards of glass that were in his eyes after Scarlett had thrown a large, glass egg at his head.

"Is he going to press charges on Wade?"

Scarlett cupped Ella's cheek and shook her head no.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Bonnie and Beau. It's just that she's my little sister and I promised her that I wouldn't." Ella grasped her mother's hand. " But I swear if I'd thought she was having sex with him I would have told you."

"I know you would have, honey. And for what it's worth, she told us that they're not having sex…yet, that is."

A young nurse appeared in the doorway to Ella's room. " Oh, sorry. I don't mean to interrupt, but here's the "thing"" I told you I'd get for you."

Scarlett looked at the nurse as she handed Ella a long, white envelope and scurried nervously out of the room. "What thing, Ella? All your tests came back normal, right", Scarlett nervously questioned while looking back and forth between Ella and her husband.

Ella and Taz smiled at each other.

"This little thing, mom." Ella reached into the envelope and pulled out a grainy, black and white picture. Inside the large, black hole was a little, bean-shaped outline.

"Surprise. You're going to be a grandma."


	28. Chapter 28 part 1

I'm not totally finished with this chapter but I wanted to at least post some of it for you guys. It's hard to believe that I have been working on this for so long. I can't begin to express how much I love your comments and feedback on my modern adaptation of Scarlett. I wish you all the very best this Christmas and new year! And send me some comments! I live for them !

"Damn, lady. This is a really nice car."

Scarlett watched as the young boy ran his hand along the side of her silver Bentley. Back when she was driving her old, beat up Toyota, she would say that luxury cars were a waste of money. Even when she and Frank began doing well with the store and the lumber business and she bought herself a shiny new Lexus, she deemed the people who sauntered their Porches and Lamborghini's along the roads of Atlanta as compensating for something. Why would anyone spend over 100,00.00 on a car? Now, millions of dollars later, she couldn't imagine driving anything else than her Bentley Mulsanne. It was like your first time tasting caviar or French champagne and wondering how on earth you ever lived without it.

She eyed the boy suspiciously as she shuffled Cat quickly out of the car and grabbed the bag of groceries she brought with her. The Old Fourth Ward was becoming a nexus for trendy shops and bars, but it was a far cry from her home in Buckhead. Whenever she visited Archie she drove one of the other, less-expensive, cars. Mercedes and BMWs were safe here. A car that that cost over a quarter of a million dollars was not. She made a show of pushing the button on her ignition remote to signal a loud BEEP that she hoped indicated that the car was locked and protected by an expensive alarm system.

She didn't bother using the buzzer and pushed in the code to enter the old warehouse that was re purposed as senior living apartment building. Cat went in first and let the door slam shut behind her causing Scarlett to shift the bag she was holding under her forearm and tried to maneuver her hand in a way that would allow her to punch in the code again and open the door at the same time. She'd have to address the common curtesy of holding the door open for the person entering a building directly following you with Cat later. The doorman, Seamus, saw her struggle and pushed open the heavy glass door for her. "Thanks, Seamus", she said in a huff of exasperation. He greeted her in his usual friendly demeanor as she opened Archie's mailbox and pulled out a week's worth of mail. She shuffled through the envelopes, stuffing the bills into her purse and tossing the junk mail into the trash. Archie was a scraggly old curmudgeon that Scarlett had inherited when Melanie died.

Melanie rescued people the same way other rescued stray animals. She saw Archie one day on her way to work and decided to adopt him as her new pet project. He was obviously homeless and from the looks of him, sick and hungry too. She began bringing him food, which he refused out of pride, then blankets and socks, which he refused to wear. One afternoon, after about a month of him refusing her kindness, she sat down on a bench next to him and pulled a sandwich from Subway out of bag and began to eat. As Archie was silently trying to figure out this obviously insane woman, she pulled out another sub and offered it to him. " A gentleman would make sure a lady doesn't eat alone." She asked him why he refused the food, blankets, and clothes. He snarled and said something about "no charity" as he took a huge bite of the sandwich offered to him. She told him that it wasn't charity and that it was simple human decency. He replied that he hadn't seen much human decency in the world. Melanie held out her hand to him. He tentatively placed his callused and dirty hand into hers. "My name is Melanie. Allow me to be your introduction to human decency."

Archie still refused to accept what he considered to be her "acts of charity". After that sandwich, he refused to accept any more handouts from Melanie Wilkes and would earn whatever it was that she gave him. Melanie respected his wishes and gave him small jobs to do around her house at first. He'd take out her garbage or clean her gutter cans in return for hot meals and new clothes. She got him a bed at a halfway house and made him promise to go there. She made sure he went to all his appointments at the V.A. and was up to date of his medications. She gave him books to read and encouraged his discovery into the written word. She took in a bum, off the dirty streets of Atlanta, and treated him like a human being. His devotion to her was immovable. Except when it came to Scarlett. Their mutual dislike of one another was no secret. Scarlett called him a lunatic vagrant and he called her a painted up hussy. On more than one occasion the two of them engaged in verbal battle that bordered on becoming physical and necessitating that Melanie step in between them.

Before Melanie died she made Scarlett promise to look after Archie. Initially, Archie refused her help, saying that he didn't want anything that came from her tainted hands. Scarlett wasn't Melanie by any means and replied that she was fine with that and didn't care if he starved to death. Slowly…very slowly.. the two formed an unlikely pair over the years. And as much as Archie hated to think ungenerously of Melanie, he noticed that while Melanie had always treated him with kindness, it was with always a semi-detached sense of kindness that made him sure of his position. While Scarlett, who frequently challenged him and told him exactly what she thought about him- good or bad, made him feel comfortable and loved. She was more likely to scream at him to 'Fuck off' or to ' Eat shit and die' than she was to bestow the hugs and kisses that Melanie gave him, but to her, he wasn't her inferior. To her, he was part of the family.

Eventually, Archie's foul moods and even fouler language got him evicted from the half-way house. Without Melanie there to vouch for him, they seemed to be looking for a way to get rid of him. Scarlett was not about to put Archie in another half-way house and instead found a nice senior living apartment that he would willingly accept as his new home. She knew he had very little money and would refuse her footing the cost of the rent, so Scarlett being Scarlett, decided to stretch the truth a little. She told Archie that she had been in contact with the V.A. and that they had found a glitch in the system where Archie was concerned. It seemed that he was owed a good deal of money. Since the V.A. was insufficiently funded, for restitution they would provide him with a permanent residence at little to no cost. In reality though, Scarlett not only bought the apartment, she bought the entire building. Archie, however, knew none of this and believed that his roomy and bright, one-bedroom, ground floor apartment (fully furnished no less) cost him one hundred dollars a month. Each month he would proudly hand over a hundred dollars to Scarlett to mail to the V.A. and each month she would redeposit it into his account. She did the same thing with his groceries. As far as Archie was concerned, he was finally getting his due after the years he spent serving our country. Even until his dying day, Archie would never discover that it was not the United States government who took care of him and that it was a woman, one he had once told " just needed killing", that rescued him.

As Scarlett walked down the first floor hallway with Cat silently trudging behind her, she could smell the delicious aroma of curry. Mrs. Jarzin was cooking her delicious chicken curry. Mrs. Jarzin was a beautiful Indian- American widow with a smile so infectious that Scarlett was convinced she could easily orchestrate world peace in a matter of hours. Just thinking about the savory sauce filled with tantalizing spices made her mouth start to water. " Doesn't that smell good, Cat?" She asked her stern-faced daughter.

Cat had been morose for a couple of days now. Scarlett had been trying to nudge her out of it but trying to get a clear answer out of Cat, especially when feelings are involved, was about as easy as trying to decipher one of the drunken texts she had sent her sisters after learning that she was going to be a grandmother.

 _Cannot you belief's though Ella is Paraguay ? Imitation no grandmother !_

If Scarlett could have one wish granted it would be that she could really communicate with Cat. Sometimes her own child seemed like a stranger to her. She rarely knew what Cat was thinking or how she felt. Most of the time, Scarlett couldn't even touch her. She remembers complaining about the endless questions and interruptions she'd get from Ella and the outrageous tantrums Bonnie threw when they were her age. What wouldn't she give to get them from Cat ?

She knocked as she opened Archie's front door with her key. "Archie, it's me. I have Cat with me so put some pants on." Archie was no fan of the "restriction " of pants and relished walking around his apartment in his briefs. Seeing him in them was a sight Scarlett would never forget. She didn't want her daughter traumatized too.

Archie appeared in the doorway still pushing fistfuls of his shirt into his jeans. His old, weathered face was clean shaven and it looked like he had just had his hair cut. Cat's face instantly lit up. Archie was her favorite person in the world. Even as an infant she'd prefer to be held by Archie rather than by anyone else. Her own mother included. She walked over to him and shoved him gently with her shoulder. It was their own special greeting.

"Hiya, Punk. I missed ya. I got a whole lotta new buttons that need seperatin' ."

Cat grinned and went to the spot where Archie kept the button box ( which was really an old cookie tin filled with buttons of every shape, size, and color imaginable). The old ladies in the building were an endless supplier of old buttons. Ever since Archie had asked if they had any to spare for his granddaughter to play with, Cat was assured to never be bored with the contents of the "button box". He had tried to tell her that the button box was magic and that it was filled with a new assortment of buttons by fairies in the middle of the night. To which Cat's reply was, "Then, I think you need a better security system if fairies are breaking into your house at night."

Leaving Cat to enjoy separating the buttons according to size and color, Archie joined Scarlett in the kitchen where she unpacking the grocery bags.

"I hope you got the good mayo this time. That last one you brought tasted like a whore's ass."

"I trust you to know exactly what that tastes like", she said as she placed the items on the table.

"You look nice today. Quite dapper, if I say so myself. You have a hot date with Mrs. Jarzin later? I smelled her cooking chicken curry."

Archie rummaged through the bags looking for the bag of iced animal cookies his doctor had told him not to have and Scarlett bought anyway. It was fortunate for Archie that Scarlett was as hard-headed as he was. Melanie would have made sure he followed the doctor's orders to the letter.

"Jarzin is a terrorist."

"She's not a terrorist. Quit saying that."

"Well she ain't American!"

Scarlett placed both her hands on the table, palms down. "She's as much of a terrorist as Dr. Nguyen is a member of the Vietcong." Poor Dr. Nguyen. It was a miracle that he even agreed to keep seeing Archie as a patient after he insulted the man to his face by calling him "Charlie" and accusing him and "his people" (he was born in San Diego) for killing his brothers in the jungles of Vietnam. Scarlett had to personally go to his office and apologize and say that she feared that Archie was suffering from the early stages of dementia.

"Now you better be nice to her or I'll put salt in your jug of sweet tea and you know I will."

Archie conceded defeat. Scarlett would most certainly put salt in his sweet tea and he'd be forced to drink that ' high – falutin' bottled water she brought him until he apologized.

"Ella's pregnant", Scarlett said as she opened the freezer and placed the pre-packaged meals inside.

Archie had already opened the bag of iced animal cookies and was busy shoveling them into his mouth. "Good for her", he said as he shifted the half chewed cookie in his mouth to the one side.

"Well, I don't happen to think that this is particularly good for her. I mean, she just got married."

"And."

"And she's only eighteen."

"And."

"And a baby changes everything."

"And."

"And now she'll probably never go to college."

"And."

"And I'm too young to be a damn grandmother ! I'm still in my thirties! "

Archie winked at her and pointed his finger at her as if to say, "BINGO!"

Scarlett slammed the freezer door shut and flopped into the hard green plastic covered kitchen chairs. She slumped back a little and let out a long breath of despair. " I'm trying to be positive with her, Archie. I really am. I said all the right things when she told me. I pretended that I was excited about being a grandmother and talked about baby names and strollers and diapers and all that other shit. And all the while, I'm devasted. All of her plans for the future are over now. Once this baby comes it'll be her whole world. All her dreams, all her aspirations - they'll evaporate behind the baby's needs. And when the baby is older and she feels that she can now take time for herself and maybe achieve something separate from the baby, she'll pop up pregnant again and the whole cycle with start over again."

"You sure you talkin' bout Ella?"

"What? Of course I'm talking about Ella." She rose from her chair and pulled out the green plastic lunch tray from Archie's bottom pantry and began filling each of the separate compartments with food that Cat was willing to eat. She punctured the stiff yellow straw into the juice box and placed them both on the table. She then removed the plastic top from the chicken enchilada dinner and placed it into the microwave for Archie. This was the extent of her cooking abilities.

She stood staring as the food turned slowly with her back turned to Archie. " I know what you're getting at, Archie. And I'm not projecting my fears onto her. It's just that I don't want her to make the same mistakes I made. I want so much more for her. For all of them."

"I take it then that you think ya life was filled with mistakes", he said as he placed three placemats on the Formica tabletop.

The microwave buzzer upset Cat so she made sure to take out the meal before the timer ended. She transferred the cheese covered enchiladas onto a plate and placed it in front of Archie. "Cat, baby. Come eat", she called out to her daughter.

"I could have made things much easier for myself if I'd done a lot of things differently, Archie"

Archie poured himself a large glass of sweet tea as Cat took her place at the table.

"Listen, the same thing could be said 'bout anyone. Evry'body I know wants to go back in time and change things. Ella's a sweet kid. But it aint gonna matter what you do or say, she's gonna make her own mistakes an there aint nothin' you can do to stop it. Besides, it evr' occur to you that your mistakes might not be seen as mistakes to her? She aint you, Girl."

"No, she isn't", she said longingly, thinking about her sweet Ella. She let out a sniff of frustrated laughter. "The one who **is** like me has gotten herself into some deep trouble and is well on her way to making a massive mistake. That one", she said as she rolled her eyes "…don't even get me started."

Archie looked at the empty place setting in front of Scarlett. "You not eatin? If anybody needs a good meal it's you. You almost skin an bone."

Scarlett ignored that comment and watched as Cat held her fork out towards Archie. He raised his own fork and clicked it against hers.

" No, I'm really not hungry. Actually I have some errands to run. Is it okay if Cat stays here with you for a couple of hours ? I have to handle something at the office today with Beau. "

"Why aint she in school?" Archie looked over towards Cat. " What'd you do, Punk? Get kicked out again?"

Cat gave Archie a sideways glance as a smirk formed on her face. Scarlett felt a pang of jealously. She wished she could get Cat to respond the way Archie did.

"Christmas is in three days. She's on break. They all are."

Scarlett could have easily left Cat at home today. There were more than enough people to look after her, but she knew how much Cat and Archie loved spending time together. Plus, Scarlett missed spending time with her and coerced her daughter to spending the morning together by promising to eat lunch with Archie in the afternoon. Cat had happily spent two hours with her mother in the planetarium at Fernbank but she hadn't been too pleased about being drug around the grocery store and made her displeasure known. Even a store as aesthetically pleasing as Whole Foods caused her anxiety. It was the number of people, the bright lights overhead, the pungent smells of patchouli and lavender, the overall stimuli that did her in. Cat bravely held one hand on the green basket handle as her mother pushed the cart around the store, focusing instead on the fact that she was going to visit. Before entering the store she had asked Scarlett how many items they would be getting. Scarlett knew better than to estimate with Cat and had made a detailed list of what she needed to buy and told her the exact number.

" _You can do this, Kitty Cat. I know you can_."

More than anything, Scarlett feared Cat's inability to function in the real world as an adult. Little steps like walking around a grocery store would hopefully lesson the anxiety for her daughter, eventually leading to her being able to walk through the aisles and select the items she needed for herself. It would be a slow moving, gradual process that Scarlett would walk Cat through as often as her daughter could tolerate.

They needed twenty five items. Cat counted them down one by one.

 _Twenty four more items and then we go see Papa Archie._

 _Twenty three more items and then we go see Papa Archie._

 _Twenty two more items and then we go see Papa Archie._

" I thought you two could spend some time together. But it's no big deal if you can't, Archie. I'll just bring her with me."

"Who said I can't keep an eye on her?" He said as he gently shoved Cat's shoulder with his hand. "How 'bout it, Punk? You wanna stay here ?" Cat nodded a fervent yes .

"Thanks, Archie." Scarlett kissed him on his scruffy cheek and held out her hand to her daughter.

"Shake hands?"

Securing her bright orange Hermes bag in the crook of her arm she bent down to be eye level with her little girl. " I won't be gone long. I shouldn't be more than 120 minutes, okay? And make sure that you remind Papa Archie that Ella's picking him up Christmas morning and bringing him to the house." She said the last part loud enough for Archie to hear. He had wiggled his way out of Thanksgiving by claiming that he had terrible diarrhea. There was no way she was going to let him miss what just might be the most dysfunctional Christmas ever. "Plus, you'll finally get to meet Phillipe", she called out to Archie. "And be nice to Mrs. Jarzin. I mean it !"

She started to walk towards the door when she felt a pair of little arms wrap themselves around her middle. She turned around as tears began to immediately flood her eyes at the realization that Cat had hugged her for the very first time in her life. For a brief, fleeting moment, her baby girl had hugged her. Cat stood back as Scarlett sank to her knees and grabbed both of her daughter's little hands.

"Oh, Kitty Cat. I love you to the moon and back. You just made Mommy very happy."

Cat furrowed her brow at her mother's confusing display of emotion.

" I know. I love you too. I just thought that you needed to feel it right now ."

STW

The clang-clang of Scarlett's heels brought everyone in the lumber office to attention. Desks were haphazardly tidied and people hurried into offices or out into the mills. Now that she was here, the lazier-faire atmosphere changed into a productive working environment.

"Beau, I need to see you in my office right now", Scarlett called to her nephew from the main hallway. "Hugh, hold all my calls."

Hugh didn't seem to hear her demands as he watched Beau nervously shuffle out of his office to follow his aunt into hers. He jumped as Scarlett pounded her palm down onto the top of his desk. " Hugh! I need you to give me verbal confirmation that you understood what I just said. No calls! You do not forward any calls to me!" Hugh took directions about as well as her dog. She had already planned out in detail what she was going to say to Beau. She couldn't let a string of interrupting phone calls distract her. "Direct all calls to Ashley or take a message."

Hugh looked confused. "What if it's the government? What if the President calls? Do you still not want to forward the call to you?" She knew that Hugh wasn't being flip with her. He really was just this stupid.

"I doubt it'll be the President", Scarlett said through her gritted teeth.

"But what if it is ?"

Scarlett removed her sunglasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. " **IF** , for some reason the President calls, you can forward the call to me. **IF** it's a life or death emergency, you can forward the call to me. But those are the only two circumstances! End of conversation, Hugh !" She began to walk away, Beau right on her heels. "If I talk to you for even a second longer I am going to be forced to pour bleach in your coffee!"

"But I don't drink coff…"

He could hear her yell as she walked into her office and slammed the door shut. "SHUT UP, HUGH!"

"You. Sit", she demanded Beau and pointed to a chair across from her desk.

"Are you going to fire me, Aunt Scarlett?" He hated how shaky his voice sounded.

"No Beau. I'm not going to fire you. If I haven't fired that idiot out there by now, it's safe to say that you have good job security."

Beau smiled at the thought of his aunt's frustrating inane interactions with Hugh. He then noticed her rigid posture and the tell-tale arch of her right eyebrow. Gone was his beloved aunt Scarlett; the one that threw Nerf balls at his head to get his attention and blew raspberry kisses on his cheeks. Before him now was instead THE Scarlett O'Hara. She folded her hands together in a serious gesture as she spoke in a calm and collected manner.

"However, as your employer, I am telling you that if you ever bring any woman, including my daughter, back to this office to fool around, you will be fired."

"Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry I disappointed you, Aunt Scarlett."

Beau looked down at his feet. Scarlett's heart ached for her sweet nephew and the sincere nature he had inherited from his mother. Her voice took on a softer tone as she relaxed her shoulders and discarded her mask of superiority. " As your aunt , I'm thrilled that you've fallen in love. Truly, I am. Any woman would be lucky to have you."

Beau was mid smile when she continued. "But as Bonnie's mother, you must know that I cannot condone this relationship."

He and Bonnie had both said that they didn't care about what people would say about them. They were in love, what did matter what anyone else thought? Yet, the heavy weight of despair that Beau felt at his aunt's rejection of him dating her daughter was suffocating. He cared very much what she thought after all. "So you're saying that we can't see each other anymore?"

"No, I'm not."

"You're not ?"

"No. You are an adult, Beau. I can't tell you what to do. And I know my daughter and I know if I tell her that she can no longer see you, it'll only make her want to see you more. But what I am doing is asking you to seriously consider this relationship and ask yourself if it's fair to her."

Beau met her eyes with his. A look of confusion spread across his handsome face. " What do you mean, fair to her?"

"There's no doubt in my mind that she's madly in love with you too. I don't, for one second, question the sincerity of either of your feelings. But she has so much of life left to live. She's so young, Beau. She should be looking forward to high school parties, prom, college, traveling the world. Instead she has her head in the clouds planning a perfect future for the two of you. She wanted to spend a semester abroad studying in France. She had dreams of trying out for the summer Olympics in equestrian. She won't do either of those things now because it will mean having to be far away from you. Do you see what I mean?"

"So you want me to end it, to save her from being tied down to me." He said it in a flippant tone that his aunt had never heard him use before. Bonnie was already rubbing off on him. Soon, he's be calling her the Tyrant, she thought.

"Once again, you misinterpret what I'm saying. What I want is for you to be the adult here. I want you to make decisions that she is too immature to make. You know all about your father and me, Beau. Do you think he was necessarily fair to me in his actions? I was the same age as Bonnie when he married your mother. He should have been the adult and told me it was completely over between the two of us instead of dangling me along for years with promises he never intended to keep."

Beau thought about what his father had told him about the adulterous relationship he had with his aunt. After the feelings of shock and anger had subsided, he could clearly see that his father had led his aunt Scarlett on. For years he confused her with declarations of his love and promises to leave his wife. Beau's aunt Honey had once let it slip that his father was as good as engaged to aunt Scarlett before he left for college and that a stern "talking to" by Beau's grandfather cleared his head and made him set his sights solely on Melanie. "Even Father knew what trash she was back then and she was only a teenager!" He remembered her saying.

His grandfather had been sold on Melanie Hamilton and the European-style dowry that came with her. Her blue blood was favored exponentially over Scarlett's Irish working class lineage. John Wilkes had encouraged the sudden engagement and early marriage of his eighteen year old son and the meek, doe -eyed daughter of Charles Hamilton Sr. He knew his son had doubts and that he still had feelings for the fiery sixteen year old that was Scarlett O' Hara. Beau winced when his father recalled the advice his father had given him on the eve of his wedding to his mother. " _Marry Melanie first, then you can have Scarlett. Girls like her are made to be mistresses, not wives._ "

Beau glanced up to his aunt and felt remorse for his father's actions. " No, Aunt Scarlett. He wasn't at all fair to you."

Scarlett looked at her crest fallen nephew, the little boy she helped bring into the world, and felt horrible for him. She moved to his side and ran her hand through his blond hair. "Look at me, Beauregard", she commanded. Melanie's big brown eyes looked back at her. " I couldn't have picked a better man for my daughter. I love you as if you were my own and I know you'd do anything and everything to make Bonnie happy. I'd be so proud to have you for a son- in -law. But please, let her grow up first."

STW

Rhett texted Scarlett to let her know that he was outside. He didn't want to knock on the door and wake up the kids. They agreed to spend Christmas together as a family and that they would both be there on Christmas morning when the kids opened their presents. He could hear her struggling to open the heavy front door along with the jingle of Forest's collar. He could picture her trying to shove the massive St. Bernard out of the way. She opened the door with her left leg splayed across the door frame to prevent Forest from getting out. "Hurry and get in before this asshole runs out", she said with a smile.

She surprised him with the briefest of kiss on the lips and told him Merry Christmas. She was dressed in black yoga pants and long sleeved raglan T – shirt that read: _Santa's favorite Ho_. Obviously a gift from her friend Cathleen. Every Christmas the lifelong friends tried to outdo the other with ridiculous gifts.

"It's outside ?" She asked.

"Yes, and I won't begin to tell you about the looks I got driving it over here."

She moved across him to get a better look at Bonnie's Christmas present. The hot pink Mercedes G class sparkled in the early morning sunlight. They had both chosen this particular vehicle for its safety and durability; not to mention that it had a state of the art tracking system that would not only indicate the location of the car, but the miles driven and how long it stayed in a location. Granted it wouldn't tell them if Bonnie drove the car to a friend's house and took off in another vehicle. But Scarlett didn't worry. She had a secret tracking device on Bonnie's phone for situations like that.

"She's going to love it."

"You think?"

"Oh yes. You can buy this girl with presents, Rhett. And you can't go wrong with big, shiny items."

"Sounds like someone I know."

"I bet you had no idea the trouble you were getting yourself into when you bought me that green hat", she laughed. "They're all still asleep, come inside and have some coffee with me until they wake up."

Once Inside, she held out a large mug of coffee and snuggled up amongst the pillows and blankets on the plush sofa in the family room. Rhett sat beside her, sipping his coffee, and try to act as normal as possible. He took long glances at his wife when she wasn't looking and noticed her garnet stud earrings. He always bought her diamonds or emeralds and the earrings were far too plain for her to have bought them for herself. He fought the fire of jealously that burned within him as he realized that they were more than likely a present from Richard. Where was the English fuck anyway? He swallowed down his anger, reminding himself of Dilcey's advice not to bait her into an argument. He shifted the conversation into safer waters.

"Wade said that he and Aimee were spending Christmas in New York with her parents."

Scarlett's lips contorted into a small snarl of disgust. " Unfortunately. I suppose I have to share him now with those jerk- offs ; not that they deserve him…..or her for that matter." She turned toward Rhett and placed her hand on top of his. The diamond on her engagement ring sparkled in the early morning sunlight. She was still wearing it; always a good sign. "I'm so glad you two settled things. Between you and me, he's started seeing Dilcey. His anger towards you is unhealthy."

"He has a right to be angry, Scarlett."

"Yes. But he doesn't have the right to almost beat you to death. His anger is not healthy."

Rhett felt a tiny pain at the blow to his masculinity. The same little boy he taught to pee standing up had properly kicked his ass.

"So I'm assuming that you sent a gift with our son to give to the delightful Ed and Cindy?"

"Of course. We're Southerners, after all. We pride ourselves on our good manners."

A smile spread across his face." I'm afraid to ask what we sent."

Scarlett took a giant gulp of her coffee and said, " We sent them matching MAGA hats and shirts that say TRUMP 2020."

Rhett almost spit out his coffee in laughter." You didn't !"

"What ? You don't think they'll like them?" she said in mock indignation. "After the huge emphasis they placed on being related to the Kennedy's and the huge financial support they give to the Democratic party I thought they'd enjoy a gift that represents our executive branch of government." Scarlett bit her bottom lip in a devious smile as she played the innocent. They both laughed at this. Scarlett gave a little snort and that made him laugh even harder.

"I see that there's a few extra stockings hung on the mantle this year", he said nodding towards the fireplace.

"And next year there'll be one more. I can't believe that we're going to be grandparents."

He snaked his arm around her waist. "You'll be the hottest grandma ever." He felt her take a deep breath in and hold it. She had been tight lipped about her impending grandchild since learning of its existence.

"Do you know what India told me ? She called and said that she's going to have the baby call her 'Mimi'. As if the baby would call her anything! I told her that if the baby calls her anything, it'll be India. And Belle agrees with me! Mimi…..seriously…."

"She could argue that the baby should call me Rhett then."

"That's different. You helped raise Ella. She's your daughter as much as mine and Frank's. India has been nothing but terrible to Ella her whole life. She doesn't deserve to be called Mimi."

Rhett saw the inner turmoil in her eyes. She stiffened in his arms and began turning her wedding ring around her finger with her thumb.

"Scarlett. What's wrong?"

"It's nothing. It's just that Frank is so thrilled about being a grandfather. He keeps telling Ella all these stories about how it was when I was pregnant with her and I just want to kill him. He paints this lovely little picture of us as a happy family and you know we were anything but. The fucker actually called me the other day when Ella and Taz visited him because he was concerned with Ella's constant puking. He asked if I had had morning sickness as badly as she was having it because he couldn't remember. I told him that I wasn't sure if it was morning sickness that made me throw up so much or if it was the fact that I was married to a rapist."

"Are you thinking of telling her what really happened?"

She looked at him as if he asked her if she wanted to smoke crack." Are you serious? Of course not!"

" In a way, I think she has a right to know. Not now, mind you, but someday. It's just a thought I have. Something to think about…..tomorrow."

She smiled at him with her pink cheeks deepening her dimples.

"This coffee is really good. You sure you made this?" he asked her as he savored the tang of the strong coffee beans.

"Of course I made it. I'm a woman of many talents." She brought up her own mug to her mouth and winked at him. He felt a warmness spreading across his chest. She was flirting with him. He smelled the aroma coming from the hot, black liquid and noticed something different. " Scarlett, what did you put in this coffee? Creamer?"

"As if I'd willingly give you dairy. I'd like you to spend the day with us and not with you holed up in the bathroom making me have to redecorate. That's one thing I most certainly do not miss. Your horrible gas." They both laughed and remembered how Scarlett kept a can of Febreeze next to her beside to spray directly on him when he farted at night. Sometimes it would get so bad that she would kick him in his side and demand that he sleep somewhere else. Much to his wife's delight, he found that avoiding dairy products significantly lessened the potency of his flatulence.

"What do you miss, Scarlett?" He said as he placed his mug next to hers on the table in front of them. "Because I'll tell you what I miss. I miss everything. I miss this. I miss you. I miss our family. I miss…." Before he could continue she pulled him towards her and kissed him. This time is wasn't a brief peck, this time, it was for real. As the kiss lingered, he reached around her waist and pulled her into his lap. They hadn't kissed like this in a long time and its effects were making him want to make love to her right now in front of the Christmas tree and that fucking elf bastard that they always forgot to move each night. She released his lips and kissed the side of his neck. Her scent alone drove him insane. That mixture of lavender and soap that always clung to her hair and body. When it was his weekend with his kids, he'd smell it on their clothes. It made being without her unbearable.

He slid his hand inside her shirt and caressed her beautiful, full breasts causing her to whimper in response. When he licked his lips, he tasted it. Brandy. The coffee was laced with brandy. Hers, probably much more than his. Alcohol, and not love, was why she was acting this way. He was debating if he should peel her away from him when the loud thud of doors opening and closing with the pounding of little feet rushing down the stairs could be heard.

"He came! He came! Thanta came!" Gerry bounded down the stairs, skipping every other step as he led the charge of his siblings in a mad dash to the brightly colored packages lying around the Christmas tree. Scarlett scooped up her baby boy in her arms. "Merry Christmas Tootsie", she said as she nuzzled his sweet scented baby neck.

"Did you see him, Mommy? Did you see Thanta? Did you, Daddy?" He asked.

"We did ! I tried to convince him to take Forest with him but he wouldn't because he doesn't listen. So he agreed to drop off a big bag of his poop for Ella's daddy instead", she said as she tickled his little belly before letting him slide to the floor to open his presents. "Merry Christmas, girls", she called out to her daughters who had already begun tearing open the presents in their stockings. A jumbled " Merry Christmas, Mama" and "Merry Christmas, Daddy" could barely be heard over the sounds of crushing wrapping paper and tearing open boxes.

To be continued...


	29. Chapter 28 part 2

**Disclaimer: Some pretty heavy stuff going on in this chapter. It's pushing the T rating to the very max. Proceed with caution. For those of you who live for steamy interactions, read on ( and leave me comments!). A modern take on the staircase scene is ahead….and it's not the falling down them part.**

So, here it is , the continuation of the last chapter. I can't begin to express just how much I love your comments( especially the long ones). Based on these awesome comments, I wanted to address a couple of questions that have come up.

Scarlett is the one who really understands Cat. If you go back a bunch of chapters you'll see that she is the one who wants her out of her current school. She was the one who accepted her diagnosis of autism and worked hard to make the world a less scary place for her daughter. Rhett is the one who refuses to listen to the doctors and believes that Cat's behavior is the result of an overindulgent Scarlett. As far as her political views, I'm not really sure if she has any. If anything, she's a business woman who only cares about her bottom line. If I had to place a bet on her voting history, I'm pretty sure she would be for less taxes and more favorable business legislation.

Scarlett is a complicated woman?ￂﾠ

So, without further ado….

STW

"Ella!" Bonnie squealed. "Did you see my new car?" She threw her arms around her older sister and planted a big smacking kiss on her cheek as she walked into the parlor.

"How could I miss it ? That things so pink you'd probably be able to see it from space. Merry Christmas, you spoiled little priss." Ella fiercely hugged her sister back. " Where's Mama?"

"I'm right here. Merry Christmas, darling. How are you feeling?" Scarlett noticed the pallor in her daughter's face. The first trimester was always the hardest. Between the unrelenting fatigue and constant nausea, daily life was a struggle for the first three months.

"Merry Christmas, Mama. I feel okay. Just a little queasy."

"Are the ginger candies helping?" Scarlett asked as she walked with her daughters to the family room to join the others. "A little", Ella said as she leaned her head against her mother's shoulder.

The family room was a disaster of crumpled wrapping paper and empty boxes. Toys and clothes were strewn everywhere. Hugs and kisses of gratitude were given as the sounds of Christmas merriment drowned out the voice of Michael Bublé's Christmas album playing over the sound system.

"Merci, Katie!" Phillipe said as he held the bottle of Courvoisier XO Impérial cognac in his hands. Archie eyed the onion shaped bottle and compared them to his gift. "He gets booze and I get compression socks? What the hell, girl ?"

Scarlett laughed and instructed Cat to hand Archie his other present: a black and white houndstooth fedora. Sadly, Archie was an Alabama fan.

More presents were opened, vividly displaying the excessive wealth of the Butlers. It made Scarlett cringe a little to see the way her kids admired each expensive present for a short while before tossing to the ground and grabbing the next one. When she and her sisters were growing up they each got one present for Christmas and they treasured it. Maybe her mother in law had a point about her kids being spoiled. The fact that the turquoise boxes from Tiffany's were strewn in the same regard as wrapping paper was reason enough to address it with them...tomorrow.

STW

Satisfied and a little bit sleepy, the after dinner talk at the table turned to Ella's wedding. They were pushing up the wedding by more than a few months. Ella wanted the ceremony to take place before the baby arrived and now, what time they once thought they had to plan was gone. Within weeks, the Butler mansion would be transformed into a palatial venue that was perfect for a wedded bliss celebration. Almost the entire ground floor would be renovated to accommodate two hundred plus guests for four hours. A dance floor was going to be put in along with two full bars, fifty round tables, two hundred and fifty chairs, a huge archway draped in white linen, and a stage for the band. Both bands: the traditional band and the second line band from New Orleans. Not to mention the explosion of flowers that were coming! Calla lilies, white and red roses, peonies in various colors, light purple hydrangeas, massive magnolias and even whole trees coved in fairy lights would soon fill the house. European china, beveled and bone white, was being expressly sent from overseas. New Orleans' own Emeril Lagasse would be working with his team to serve up dishes of crawfish etouffee , jambalaya, oysters Rockefeller, seafood gumbo, shrimp and grits, bread pudding with rum sauce and king cake. On top of that was the cost of the wedding planner, the hairdressers, the makeup artist, the photographer, servers, dressers, limousine drivers, and the videographer. Scarlett's cousin from Ireland was flying in to perform the ceremony and would need accommodation along with the influx of people from Taz's side of the family that were coming in from Louisiana. The entire wedding was going to cost a fortune. Rhett had asked Scarlett to give him a round-about figure of how much money he was spending. She shook her head at him and told him that he didn't want to know. Frank's contribution was paying for Ella's dress. At least he could be grateful for that.

She was right. He didn't want to know. He was certain the total dollar mount would be close to a million…maybe two. And this was for Ella, their daughter with the simple tastes! He couldn't even fathom what Bonnie would want for her wedding day. Knowing her, she'd want to wear the hope diamond around her neck and have the reception in Buckingham palace.

"Who am I walking with?" Bonnie asked her sister. What she really wanted to know was who it was that Beau would walk down the aisle. As the maid of honor, she knew she was paired with the best man; it was Taz's best friend Adrian - whom she had never even seen a picture of. She knew Ella would have to go through the procession of the bridal party. She did it every time someone asked her a question about the processional.

Ella pulled her bottom lip between her teeth as she ran through the pairs in her head.

"Let's see…. First it's Uncle Rhett and Mama, then Miss Belle and Uncle Ashley, Uncle Henry and India, Phebs and Wade, Gracie and Beau, Taz's cousin Stella and his friend Tank, then you with Dre, Cat….if she'll walk, Gerry and Preston, and then my dad and me."

Bonnie drug the tines of her fork through her left over dessert. " You should have Gracie walk with Wade. She's taller than Phoebe. It'll make more sense."

"You know why I can't have Gracie walk with Wade. I'm not sure she could control herself", Ella laughed.

"So, let's her just walk with my boyfriend. No big deal, right?" Bonnie threw up her hands in frustration. "Gracie's a slut, Ella."

The clang of multiple pieces of cutlery hitting plates and saucers could be heard.

"Whoa!" Rhett chastised Bonnie following her mother's high pitched gasp of astonishment.

"Bonnie! Seriously? Your brother is right here." she said as she held her hands over Gerry's little ears as he yawned sleepily in her lap.

Bonnie flopped back in her chair and crossed her arms defensively over her chest. " I'm sure he's heard much worse coming out of your mouth, Mom. Like that time when he wouldn't let Mammy leave for Tara one weekend because he heard you yelling that you were coming and he made her wait for you ? Yeah, he'll be in therapy for that for sure."

Scarlett's cheeks were turning a blushing pink. "I have no idea what you are talking about, Eugenie. I suggest you lay off the drugs." Rhett couldn't help but smile. He remembered that day too. He had laughed so hard at the raised voices of his wife and his mother in law arguing about Mammy having to wait and getting to Tara later than she had wanted.

Scarlett must have remembered too. She caught Rhett's eye and winked at him.

"Just remember, Ella, payback's a bitch", Bonnie said with a saucy shake of her head.

"And so are you, little sister", said Ella with a smile. She could see anger forming in her sister's eyes and was grateful for Gerry's interrupting questions. If she were forced to have a drawn out verbal battle she knew she would most certainly hurl. She wondered why they called it morning sickness if it lasted all day and was caused by anything and everything.

"Was I at your wedding, Mommy?" He spun his mother's black curl around his pudgy little finger as he spoke.

"No, Precious. You weren't born yet."

"Ah, je parie que tu étais si belle le jour de ton mariage, Katie", said Phillipe wistfully. Like so many other events in his daughter's life, he was not present on her wedding day.

Rhett knew enough conversational French to ask for directions and order wine. The fluidity and speed at which Phillipe and Scarlett spoke the language was lost on him. "What'd he say?" he asked his wife.

"He said that I must have looked beautiful on our wedding day", she answered.

Rhett remembered everything about that day. His brother and a few close friends were trying to get him to down shots of tequila saying, "It's your wedding day, man !" Yes, it was his wedding day, he thought. All the more reason to stay sober. He didn't want to miss a single moment.

He remembered how his breath caught in his throat the moment the wide oak doors opened and he saw her. He was certain that there were no words ever invented to describe how beautiful she looked. The white lace overlay of her satin gown illuminated her fair skin and made her green eyes even more vivid. It reminded him of the part in the movie, The Wizard of Oz where Dorothy opens the door to the Technicolor world. She didn't wear a veil and had her hair swept up in a mass of shiny, black curls that left her bare shoulders and collarbone on display. He was so full of emotion as he watched her walk towards him that he wanted to laugh, cry, and shout for joy all at the same time. She gave him a shy smile, the same one she still gave him when she was up to something, when Gerald placed her hand in his and declared that he, her mother, and her Mammy gave this woman to be wed.

And that's when his world stopped turning. Everything he had ever known before, everything he had ever experienced, it no longer mattered. Everything from then on was… her….for her…because of her….. She became his sun, moon, and stars. She was the reason he lived. Every heartbeat, every single breath, every part of him now belonged to her. Seventeen years ago, he placed his heart in her hands and vowed to love her and keep her all the days of his life.

She had asked him, years and years later, if he loved her on their wedding day. He remembered wrapping her in his arms and saying," Scarlett, I've loved you from the moment I laid eyes on you."

How could have put all of this in jeopardy? How could he go the rest of his life without her? And as much as he loved her, he knew that she loved him just as much. "What in the hell are we doing? he asked himself. "We don't work without the other one. We're two pieces of the same whole". He reached for her hand across the table and brought it to his lips.

"The best day my whole life. She was unbelievably beautiful, Phillipe."

Forest picked up his bulbous head and looked towards the doorway to the dining room. "Is someone knocking?" Taz asked. Scarlett shook her head. "I don't hear anything but would you mind going to check, though? If it's Frank or India, don't answer it."

"Mom…." Ella chided.

Bonnie's face lit up when she saw Taz walk back in with Beau. "Merry Christmas, everybody", he said. He shook hands with the men around the table. He kissed his aunt and Ella and gave Bonnie to lightest and quickest peck ever recorded in the history of kissing.

Scarlett saw that Rhett clenched his jaw at this. She and Rhett were in agreement in the way they handled their daughter's first real relationship. Rhett was less than eager to allow it to continue but he knew Scarlett was right. The only thing they would accomplish by forbidding Bonnie to see Beau would be to drive her further into his arms. Scarlett was convinced that Beau would do the right thing and Rhett really wanted to trust her.

"You're walking down the aisle with Gracie for the wedding. Lucky you", she said as he sat down beside her. "Be sure to remind her to keep her panties on."

"Oh my gosh, Bonnie! You act like they're required to hook up as part of it. They walk down the aisle together…. and it's not even the whole aisle! They meet half way! Will you quit being such a whiney baby about it ? God forbid something not go your way. You're such a fucking brat!" Ella threw her napkin on the table and rushed to the nearest bathroom. Taz looked apologetically at the table as they sat in stunned silence at Ella's reaction to her sister. " Hormones..", he said." It's been…. rough…"

Scarlett understood her poor son-in-law all too well. There were more than a couple of times during her pregnancies that she believed she was going crazy. She handed Gerry over to Rhett and went to her daughter's aid. "When she comes back, you need to apologize", she said to Bonnie.

"Apologize for what?! She's the one who called me an 'effing brat! You always do this, you know!? You're always on her side, Mom!"

Scarlett caught Beau's eyes as she walked out and sighed. "I'm on no one's side. You have a lot of growing up to do, little girl."

When Ella came back, she did so in tears, clinging to her mother and begging her sister's forgiveness. Bonnie gave her own , half-hearted apology and embraced her sister. "You know I love you, Ella-Bella. You're my bestest friend." That sent Ella into a fresh round of tears and another trip to the bathroom.

After that, Taz said their goodbyes and carefully ushered his wife to the door.

"Make sure she gets plenty of fluids, Taz", Scarlett said as she kissed them both goodbye. " Go home and rest, darling. I'll call you later."

STW

"Mama, would it be okay if I drive Papa Archie home? Please!" Bonnie pleaded. "Please say yes. Please, please, please."

Scarlett was trying to peel off Gerry's clothes and put him in some clean pajamas. Bonnie was on her heels as she carried him to his bed. She untangled her mother's hair from her little brother's vice-like grasp and helped pull down the Scooby- Doo top over his cute, little belly. Scarlett knew she was asking more than to drive Archie home. She was asking for time to spend alone with Beau after they dropped him off at his apartment. She knew how her daughter's mind worked and would always be two steps ahead.

"Your birth control won't fully kick in for another week or so, Bonnie. Don't do anything stupid."

Bonnie's face flushed with embarrassment. "Mom!" she whispered , looking around the room.

Her mother had quietly taken her to the gynecologist to receive the first of what would be monthly contraceptive shots. The last thing Scarlett needed was two pregnant daughters. Rhett would view this as giving Bonnie "permission" to have sex, so she simply neglected to tell him.

"Ask your father first and see what he says. If he says yes, then it's okay with me."

Bonnie face fell. She didn't want to ask her father. She knew he'd say no; that's why she asked her mother. Playing them off of each other was getting more difficult by the day.

STW

Rhett eyed Beau suspiciously. This was the first time they had been left alone since the day he found Bonnie with him. Beau tried to make small talk with him and asked him questions about business, football…even the weather. Rhett answered him in one or two word sentences. He held his gaze on Beau the whole time. Beau didn't even see him blink. It was unsettling. He waited until he was sure his wife and daughter were out of earshot.

"Do I have to remind you to keep it in your pants, son?" he finally said after a long gulp of whiskey. "Because if I find out you didn't, they'll never find your body. You understand?"

Beau nodded nervously. "Yes, sir".

Both men looked up as Scarlett and Bonnie reentered the room. Scarlett walked up to Rhett and tilted his glass towards her and took a sip. She licked her lips as she wrinkled her nose." Ugh, whiskey."

Bonnie's heart swelled with love for her mother. She knew that her mother's small act just now was for her benefit. She saw how her father watched as her mother ran her tongue along her bottom lip. He'd assuredly relent just to be able to be alone with her. She caught a glimpse of them making out this morning before Gerry loudly announced their presence. For the first time, she was thankful for her parents' massive libidos.

"Daddy, is it okay if I drive Papa Archie home and then go to a movie with Beau? Please? I'll answer my phone the second you call it and text you when the movie starts and when it's over."

Phillipe walked down the stairs smelling like cologne and fastening the Channel cuff links onto the French cuffs of his shirt. " I can drop Arch at home on my way, Empress. Enjoy your evening , mon chérie."

Bonnie beamed at her grandfather. She loved how he called her Empress. She knew countless girls named Elizabeth, Victoria, Catherine…all of them, the names of queens. She, however, was named after an Empress. Empress Eugenie of France was her namesake. Empresses trumped queens any day.

"On you way where?" Scarlett asked him. He raised his eyebrow and gave his daughter a devilish grin that she knew meant that he was meeting up with a woman…. or women. Her father was what Ella would call a man-whore. "Do you really want to know, Katie?"

"Nope. Forget I asked." She walked toward Archie and gave him a kiss on the cheek and turned to Philippe and did the same. "Either way, I'm going to usher this young lady upstairs to bed." She turned toward Cat. "Time for bath and then bed. Say goodnight to everyone, kitty Cat. And Bonnie", she said as she glanced back towards them. " Just in case Daddy says yes, your curfew is 11:30. Don't be late. "

STW

"You're welcome to stay until she comes home", Scarlett said to Rhett. The house was eerily quiet with Bonnie and Phillipe out and Gerry and Cat fast asleep. He flopped back on the sofa next to her and kicked off his shoes. "I planned on it", he said as he lifted his socked feet next to hers onto the huge leather ottoman. "What are we watching?" he asked, indicating to the large flat screen perched on the wall opposite them.

"Let's watch Die Hard. You know it isn't Christmas until we've seen Hans Gruber fall from Nakatomi tower", she said with a smile.

She inched toward him and ran her foot up his pant leg. She touched her cold, bare toes to the skin on his shin. He pulled his leg away from her in a dramatic gesture.

"Are they cold?" she giggled.

"Yes!" he answered. "You're not human. You have the feet of a corpse. Keep those things over there."

A few seconds passed and he could see her slowly moving her toes toward him again. She stilled them for a bit, raising the level of anticipation between them. She was quicker than he was and swung both her feet up his lap and under his shirt. She used her cold toes to tickle his stomach, rendering him immobile with laughter.

"SSSSS….TTTOP! …..IM MMMMM… I'M GONNA….BRRRRRRREAK…YYYYOUUUUR… TTTTOOOOOESSSSS!" He said between laughs.

"You're going to what?" She said as she moved her feet around to the sensitive skin on his sides. " You're going to break my what?" Rhett could feel her grip on his sides weaken as she laughed with him. He grabbed her inner thigh with his hand and began tickling her back. "Rhett, No ! Ahhh! Stopppppp!" she squealed.

"You'll never win the tickle game, Scarlett. I'm the master."

Her feet were no longer on him and were pushing against him as she tried to get away. "Stop, Rhett. Please!" she laughed.

"Say that I'm the master and I'll stop."

"NNNNNEEEVVVVVVERRRR!" She said as tears of laughter spilled out of her eyes.

Rhett began tickling the other thigh and was met with the silliest, high pitched wail that he had ever heard come out of her mouth. "Then, I'll never stop. I'll tickle you until you pee yourself."

They were on the floor now. She was on her back pushing against his shoulders as he hoovered over her. He gave a moments reprieve between resuming the task at hand. It was right at the moment that he was about to commence the tickles that she placed her palm against his cheek and lifted her head to meet his and brushed her lips against his. There was no trace of brandy this time. She slowly lowered her head back to the floor and looked up at him. He ran the pad of his thumb against the outer edges of her lips, gasping a little as she gently bit at his skin.

"I love you." Her words were so soft they almost sounded like a whisper. Her breathing was deep and labored but it wasn't because of pent up passion or residues of laughter. Instead, she was trying desperately not to cry. "Do you still choose me, Rhett?" she asked as tears glistened in her eyes.

Rhett stilled, his upper body held up by his forearms. "How could you ask me that question, Scarlett? I love you so much that it could kill me…so much that it is killing me. Of course I choose you, my darling. I always have."

He stared down into those tempting green eyes that were now wide and pleading; showing the fear and vulnerability that lie beneath her tough exterior. Her tears were falling along the curves of her cheekbones and into her ears. "No more", she said. She took her hand and ran the back of her hand against his face.

"No more?" he asked.

"No more women."

"Scarlett…."

"Say it. Swear it to me. Tell me you choose me and only me."

He thought back to the time when he told her the same thing. It was during the early morning hours after Ashley's fortieth surprise birthday party.

The talk of the town was that Ashely's sister had caught Scarlett and Ashley "embracing" at their office. Scarlett swore her innocence, saying that it was nothing more than a comforting hug, blaming India's jealously for making it seem like something is wasn't. Rhett, however, was well aware of his wife's feelings toward Ashley and did not believe her. The fight that ensued between them before the party had Bonnie and Ella crying and Mammy banging on their bedroom door saying that they either settle down or she was going to call the police.

They rode to the party in silence, both of them seething in fury at the other one. "Don't fucking touch me", she said as he put his hand on the small of her back as she slid into the car.

"You should be so lucky. Trust me, my pet, I have zero desire to touch anything on you."

That was a complete lie. All Rhett wanted to do was touch her, to run his hands all over her body, to touch her in the places he knew she liked. To revel watching her throw her head back in ecstasy as she climaxed.

Rhett knew she wore her most revealing and tightest red dress tonight on purpose. Rhett had dubbed her " a walking wet-dream" when she wore it: that is ,the one and only time that she wore it. Unfortunately for Rhett he wasn't the only man to feel that way and the red dress had been regulated to the back of her closet, never to be worn again ever since. Rhett cursed the desire he felt as he watched her with her jaw clenched and her breasts pushed up and high. So she wanted to play this game, did she? Well, he could play it just as well as she could.

At the party Rhett wasted no time engulfing every woman there with his charms. He was as smooth and debonair as ever; making sure to rush to the aid of any fair maiden with delectable treats and glasses of champagne. He played to their heartstrings by gushing about his two year old baby girl. He pulled out pictures of her out of his wallet and told stories about the cute little things she did. He talked about how much he loved his mother and sister and played up his career in the Navy. He commented on their beauty and said that their husbands didn't deserve them, vowing that he would certainly tempt them away from their worthless spouses if he too were single.

"How brave you are, Captain Butler!" and " I wish my [insert significant other's name] would do that for me." and the worst of all , "Scarlett's so very lucky to have you!" could be heard coming from their flustered mouths.

Rhett made sure Scarlett heard them too and gave her an unsettling smile when he caught her listening. She, in turn, narrowed her eyes at him; meeting his challenge.

Where Rhett was obvious, she was subtle. She delicately sipped her champagne, tilting her head in a way that made her eyes sparkle and dimples deepen when she smiled. She gently placed her hand on the arm of the man she spoke to just long enough to be tempting but not long enough to be considered improper. She tugged in the corner of her bottom lip as though she were deep in thought at what they said and then ran her tongue along the little indentations her teeth caused afterwards. Rhett was on fire as he watched her. They were drawn to her like moths to a flame. She didn't have to work the room like he did, they came to her…..just as he had done…. willingly. She caught his eye and raised her eyebrow at him in triumph before walking toward Melanie and Ashley to deliver the final blow. She made sure Rhett had adequate time to see how good her ass looked hugged by the burgundy velvet of her dress as she placed a chaste little kiss on Ashley's cheek and softly wished him a happy birthday.

As if drawn by some unseen force, Rhett was next to her in an instant and tightly grasped her forearm tightly.

"Darling, I'm afraid we will have to go. Mammy just called and said that Bonnie has a temperature."

Melanie gasped. "Oh no! My poor Bonnie. I know all too well about that. It's horrible when their sick. I bet all she wants is Mommy, right?"

"You know how they are when they're sick, Melly. Mammy said nothing will soothe her. She keeps crying for Scarlett. I'm sorry but we'll have to duck out early. Happy birthday, Ashley", Rhett said as he shook Ashley's hand and kissed Melanie goodbye.

"Of course! Make sure you give her a big kiss from aunt Melly."

The ride home was even more tense than the ride there. They were both even angrier than before and this time they were soused with alcohol. As soon as they entered the house the fight resumed.

"Well, where is she? Our poor, little baby who only wants Mommy? Seems pretty quiet to me, you lying asshole." She stormed past him and straight into the kitchen where she grabbed a bottle of brandy and a glass tumbler. " And if you ever grab me like that again I'm going to…."

"You're going to what, Scarlett? As if you'd even care if she was sick. You're the worst fucking mother I've ever seen." he mocked.

"Fuck you. I'm going to bed."

She stumbled a little as she walked across their polished marble floors and grabbed a chair near the parlor for support.

"Drunk, my Pet? Amazing how you were able to hold your liquor at the party. You're such a slut, Scarlett. You should have seen yourself tonight. I almost felt sorry for you."

She tried to swing at him but he caught her arm midair and pinned it behind her. It hurt. She could feel the sharp tingles of pain that ran down her arm and for some reason it excited her. She felt the longing that she refused to let surface, come up and this time she was too drunk to suppress it , letting a little moan escape her lips. Damn it, she wanted him. Unlike him, she hadn't had sex in almost two years and her vibrator paled in comparison to the real thing.

She didn't want Ashley. Their hug was nothing more than what she said it was. She was upset and he hugged her. That was all.

She wanted to make things work with Rhett but he always made things so difficult. It was almost as if he wanted her to fight with him. Their relationship was one continual mind-fuck; with them always trying to out-hurt each other. This sick game of theirs was evenly stacked too. Rhett was just as stubborn as she was and would call her bluff almost every time. They were left in stagnant at an impasse that was unbreachable. The worst stalemate being when they decided to sleep in separate bedrooms. She never dreamed that he would just relent when she refused him the comfort of her body as if it didn't matter to him. He reacted by throwing a glass filled with whiskey at her portrait in his office and said that there were plenty woman in the world to fuck.

The desperation she felt afterwards was maddening. She wanted nothing more than to rush across the hall and tell him that she made a terrible mistake and to please come back to their bed. She'd do it too….if she weren't hell bent on winning. But what did her pride get her? Him having the worst kept secret mistress of all time….that he flaunted in her face.

"If I'm a slut what does that make you? At least I didn't have to resort to showing pictures of my baby to get a response from the opposite sex. All I had to do was stand there. Tell me, Rhett, how does it feel to know that every man in that room tonight wanted to fuck your wife? That all those men will be seeing my face as they jerk off in the shower or screw their wives?"

He forcefully pushed her up against the wall. Her back slammed against the textured concrete. It caused her body to betray her further. She narrowed her eyes as she tilted her head back and bit her lip. Her breasts rose and fell as her breathing became heavier.

"Stop it, Scarlett. Shut up. I'm warning you."

"Warning me? Ha! You won't do shit. You're a coward, Rhett Butler. I wonder though, do you ever think of me when your locked away in your own bedroom across the hall from mine, safe behind closed doors? Do you picture me in my bed, thinking of Ashley and touching myself? Imagining that he's on top of me, making me come?"

Rhett towered over her now. "Do you want me to hurt you?" he growled.

She taunted him with a small laugh. "Please. We both know that you don't have it in you to lay a finger on me. You aren't even man enough to walk a few paces to take what you want. You'd rather fuck that willing whore than to take what is already yours and right in front of you. Is Belle's flabby, rancid cunt as nice and tight as mine? Do you remember how I would clench down on your dick right before you came? ….. I know Ashley does."

The sound of glass crashing echoed across the room. They could both feel the splash of the liquor as the bottle broke at their feet. He kissed her with dominance and force, tearing the dress from her upper body and roughly grabbed at her exposed breasts. She bit his shoulder and his bottom lip, moaning into his mouth and pulling him against her as hard as she could. Their kisses were so frantic that their teeth crashed against each other as their tongues fought for dominance.

"Do you know what you do to me?" he breathed against her mouth as he reached under her dress and slid his fingers into her panties.

"Yes." She panted back. She arched her back to give him better access to her body and gasped as she felt him push two fingers inside her.

"Rhett?" The way she said it sounded like a whimper. Rhett made a Mmmm sound as he kissed her breast and licked down toward her nipple.

"Fuck me. Take me upstairs and fuck me."

They made love twice that night and once in the early morning of the next day. As they lay together, naked and exhausted, he asked her if she choose him over Ashley. She turned in his arms and faced him. She placed her hand on his cheek and softly whispered yes.

STW

"Watch this." Bonnie said to Beau as she drove them down Peachtree Street. She reached to push a button next to her ignition and pink, purple, and lime green lights flooded the interior of the jeep. "Isn't that cool ?!" she asked him.

"Very. Hey, let's pull into Centennial Park for a minute so we can talk. We've got time before the movie starts."

Giddy with anticipation, Bonnie made her way through downtown and into the lush greenspace nested within the bustling city of Atlanta. In her mind, "talk" meant "make out". She found a spot where they could be alone, slightly secluded from the other park patrons on this Christmas night. As soon as she put her car into park she unbuckled her seatbelt and lunged toward Beau, immediately seeking out his lips. " I've been wanting to do that all day", she said.

She pulled back as she noticed the expression on Beau's face. It was one of anguish and not delight. "Something's wrong. What is it ? Did my Dad say something to you?"

Beau took both her hands in his and brought them to his mouth. He kisses the soft flesh of her fingertips and took a deep breath. "Sit back. We need to talk."

Bonnie adjusted herself to sit in her seat and faced him. "You're scaring me, Beau."

He pulled a black box out of his pocket and opened it, presenting it to her. Inside was silver ring with tiny diamonds surrounding a princess cut sapphire. "Oh my gosh ! He's proposing !", she thought. Excitement poured through her. "Beau", she breathed. "Is this…"

"It's not an engagement ring." He said. He faltered a bit as he said it. More than anything, he wished it were. He would marry her in a second.

She felt a pang of disappointment as he said it, but it was a short lived because as soon as he slid the ring onto her left ring finger, she was elated. The ring was inappropriate for an engagement ring anyway. Any diamond under five carrots would be unacceptable.

"It's a promise ring. A ring with a promise to one day replace it with a wedding ring."

"It's beautiful! I love it, Beau", she said before she kissed him. "almost as much as I love you."

Before she could kiss him again, he held out his palms to her and said, "Wait. There's something I need to tell you."

"I've been accepted into Columbia for the Spring semester and I'm going."

"Columbia? "she asked.

"Columbia University… in New York…..I decided to finish my bachelor's in business. I start in early February so I'm leaving the day after Ella's wedding to go up there." Bonnie sat speechless as he continued. "I already have a lot of college credits completed so I should graduate in about two years."

"Beau, I'm confused. Why do this? Why now? What about us? You're leaving to move to New York and leaving me here in Atlanta? So we're supposed to have a long distance relationship for two years? That's a long time to be away from each other, Beau."

Beau's sad eyes looked down at the floorboard of her car. In his silence, she understood. They weren't going to have a long distance relationship for two years, that wasn't what he meant. They weren't going to have a relationship at all. He was breaking up with her.

"Don't do this , Beau. Please. I love you."

"Bonnie, I love you too. But you're so very young and you have so much life in front of you. I'm afraid that if I stay here I'll prevent you from living out your dreams and you'll end up resenting me for it. In two years, I'll graduate and so will you, and then if you feel the same about me, we'll pick up right where we left off and move forward."

"No", she cried, "Don't go. Don't leave me. I'll die without you, Beau. You know you don't want this. You don't want to leave me. "

He wiped the tears from her eyes. "Of course I don't want to leave you but I have to. For us, I have to. Me staying here isn't fair to you."

"Fair to me? What the hell does that even mean?" she asked. "You sound like my mother...fair to me….. This is her idea isn't it? She's a tyrant, Beau! She's manipulating the situation to get her way; can't you see that?!"

"This wasn't her idea."

"Then it was yours?!"

The hurt in her face killed him. This was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do in his life. "Yes. It was my idea."

"So let me get this straight. You're breaking up with me for two years so that I can be free to" she curled her fingers into air quotes, "live out my dreams?"

"Bonnie…. it's not breaking up, it's more like pressing pause."

The tears in her eyes were now gone; evaporated by the steam of her anger. "Say what you really mean, Beau. You want to free from your teenaged little girlfriend so you can screw a bunch of college whores for two years."

He reached for her hand only to have her jerk it back in revulsion. " Bonnie, you know that I don't think that."

"Then you're nothing but a wimp. You let all that crap that my parents are saying get to you. You're not man enough to fight for me, or for us. Well I have news for you, Beau. In two years' time, I won't be here waiting for you. You walk away from me now and it's over for good."

"Bonnie, your upset, but eventually you'll see that this is the best thing for us both."

She shook her head in defeat, licked her lips, and squared her shoulders back. The blood of her mother ran furiously through her veins. Her eyes narrowed to shards of ice blue glass. "Here", she said as she slid the ring off her finger and threw it back at him. " I don't want your fucking ring. We're done. Get the fuck out of my car."

STW

Scarlett stepped out of her shower and dried off using one of plush peach colored towels. She wrapped the luxurious cotton around her body and tucked a corner into the tight folds of the fabric. She stood in the doorway of the master bath and watched as her husband slept. His bronzed upper body lay uncovered on their bed. He looked so relaxed with his arms folded behind his head. Scarlett smiled thinking how right it felt to have him back in their bed. She fingered through her hair and felt a thrilling chill run down her spine as she remembered what they did on that bed not even fifteen minutes ago. This is the second time they had made love after being separated. Actually, it was the second AND third time they had made love. She was sure they were probably the worst separated couple ever. If there was a manual for separated couples it would certainly discourage intimate rendezvous between the couple.

Quietly, she searched through her boudoir for panties and a nightgown. The cool silk felt like heaven as it slid down her smooth skin. She crawled back in her bad and wrapped her arms around Rhett and sighed deeply with contentment. They were going to be okay. She was willing to start over again with him; be damned what anyone would say. "Screw them", she thought as she placed a soft kiss on his shoulder and tasted the saltiness of his skin. "I love you", she whispered.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, his phone dinged with an alert to a new text message, rousing her. Seconds later, her phone did the same. It wasn't from Bonnie, she'd come home hours ago. Slowly, it came to her. She had set that particular alert for the carbon copy on his phone when there was any communication from the infamous M.S. It was her. The other woman. Scarlett reached to her bedside table and reached for her phone, praying that she were wrong.

 _I need to see you. Soon. Meetup sometime this week? – M.S._

She placed the phone face down back on the table and curled herself into a little ball on her side of the bed. She hid her face in the hollow between her knees and arms and cried as the dream of them getting back together crumbled before her. There was no hope for them. They were over. There was no use in trying to work it out. He would continue to do this to her. Over and over again, he would be unfaithful.

She was now resolute. They would get through Ella's wedding and then she would file for divorce.


	30. Chapter 30

**Here's a super long one! I can probably produce another good one in a decent amount of time…if I get lots of comments. Yes, this is literary blackmail…. (All characters original to Gone With the Wind and Scarlett are not mine)**

Scarlett pressed the hard metal of the binoculars against her eyes and winced in pain. Her last round of Botox left her with tiny bruises along the corners of her eyes that were sensitive to touch. She patted around the area of her eyes with her cool fingertips; savoring the instant relief. Dilcey had once told her that she had noticed a pattern in Scarlett's elective cosmetic surgeries. Each time Rhett was unfaithful or began dallying off on the road of infidelity, she would have something done. Something lifted, or pulled, or sucked out. Something to make her feel young and beautiful. Her plastic surgeon was always happy to oblige. He called Scarlett his Magnum Opus. A masterpiece; a walking canvas of his art. Funny how he showed his gratitude for her loyalty by overcharging her most of the time, though. Dilcey had wanted to explore this further before all the recent drama in her life happened, curtailing her typical sessions into the angst ridden cry fests they now had become.

She was attempting to blend in, to be incognito, to catch them , or rather him, red-handed. And so she sat in one of her less flashy cars, the Lexus LX sedan, behind tinted windows in the parking lot of a CVS with a perfect viewing distance of the trendy Pho restaurant located across the street. She had been a silent third party observer of the text messages between Rhett and M.S. for the past week and was going to confront them both today. They agreed to meet today at noon to discuss something urgent. She suggested they meet at the Pho place and he agreed.

She had psyched herself up for this for days. She tried to remain confident. She told herself that she could do this; blared Beyoncé and Aretha Franklin songs through her earpods as she worked out with her trainer, mentally calling herself a bad-bitch, preparing both her mind and body for what would be the defining moment in her marriage.

She took a large gulp of her forgotten Pumpkin Latte from Starbucks. There wasn't much time left before they stopped serving it now that the holidays were over. As a business woman she complimented Starbucks on their marketing techniques but as a consumer she hated that they only served pumpkin spice for a limited time. She contemplated how she could apply this method to her own business. It really was genius. Too bad the public didn't have a heroin-like addiction to good lumber the way they did with overpriced coffee. She rolled her eyes at the ridiculous way they had spelled her name and shook the remaining drops into her mouth. " Well that's the last of it, Charlight", she said to herself.

"You're using work to district yourself again. Stay focused." she repeated Dilcey's words to herself.

She took it as a sign from God that she was able to find the perfect spot to park her car on a clear, sunny day with an almost straight shot into the giant glass windows of the restaurant in which her scum-bag husband was seated at a table waiting for his paramour who was running late.

She held the binoculars up again and noticed that Rhett looked nervous. He had no clue Scarlett was on to them. The morning after they spent the night together she gently shook Rhett awake and asked him to leave before the kids were up and starting asking questions. He looked hurt and confused as to why he had to go but left without creating a scene. She'd avoided him for the most part since then as she put her plan into action. It had been easy to do than she had thought. Beau had done exactly as Scarlett had predicted and put the brakes on his relationship with Bonnie. Her reaction to this abrupt end and broken heart was more than enough melodrama to keep both Rhett and Scarlett occupied.

Scarlett watched as Rhett looked down at his watch to check the time. She was running late. Where was this woman? Was she standing him up? Scarlett wondered if M.S. had caught wind of being watched and was scared off.

" _Call from Sue Ellen_ " The automated voice of Siri came though her speakers as her phone rang. " _Call from Sue Ellen_ ".

Scarlett hit the dismiss button. She would have to call Suellen, or as Siri said it : "Sue Ellen" as if it were two separate names instead of one, back later. Her attention was finally peaked.

"M.S.", she whispered.

Scarlett a chill go through her body as she watched the woman emerge from a red Mercedes and walk towards the restaurant. It was her. It had to be. Tall and blonde with legs for days, she sauntered along the sidewalk adjusting the oversized sunglasses on her face. She zeroed in on the woman to get a better look at who her husband was throwing away his family for. There was something about this woman that was familiar. Scarlett felt as though she knew her somehow. Try as she might, though, she couldn't place her. How did she know her? She couldn't focus. She was having trouble focusing on anything at all because Sue would not quit calling her. The incessant ringing was driving her crazy.

" _Call from Sue Ellen_." ' _Call from Sue Ellen_."

"What?!" Scarlett screamed into the phone as she finally answered it. "I'm doing something !"

She heard Suellen's voice crack on the other end of the phone. "It's Dad. He's dying, Sissy. We need you here now."

STW

The news of the impending death of her father was easier to process. Not easy in the way that it didn't affect her deeply but easier in the fact that it was expected. She was prepared for it, had been prepared for it for over a year now. She watched as her father's condition worsened. She saw it each time she made a visit. His eyes were more glazed over, he wasn't eating, he'd stopped producing urine. His death was eminent and she knew it.

She could hear the "death rattle" in his breathing as she now stood at the foot of her father's bed in his dimly lit room. That ominous chortle that appears right before death had descended upon him. She chose to ignore it and didn't mention anything about it to her sisters. They alone would be with their father as he passed. Husbands, children, friends, doctors and nurses were asked not to disturb them. Dr. Porkington had pulled Scarlett aside and told her when she arrived that is was only a matter of hours. She wordlessly shook her head in understanding and tried to plant a smile on her face that she hoped would fool Careen into thinking that she could continue to count on her big sister to get them through this. Careen sang her father's favorite Irish song to him as she brushed the wisps of white hair from his forehead.

 _"Tura lura lural,_

 _Tura lura lie,_

 _Tura lura lural,_

 _Hush don't you cry."_

Sue placed a hand on her expanding belly and locked eyes with Scarlett. Scarlett slowly shook her head no and Sue understood. He would leave them soon. Very soon. These would be his last moments on earth. They sat on opposite sides of his bed and listened as Careen continued to sing. Her father's hands were placed on his chest as if he were already dead. One was placed over the other one. Scarlett took the rosary from his beside table and put it in his hands. She laid one of her own trembling hands on top of his.

 _"Tura lura lural,_

 _Tura lura lie,_

 _Tura lura lural,_

 _That's an Irish lullaby."_

Sue handed Scarlett a tissue and placed her own hand on top of her sister's. She sat opposite Scarlett on her father's bed and leaned her body across his knees and rested her head onto Scarlett's shoulder. Both of them were sniffling as tears fell from their eyes. Scarlett and Sue were extraordinarily different women and fought more than they ever got along but they seemed to be able to communicate with an unspoken language, to know what the other was thinking. With heads pressed together and fingers entwined, they both thought of their father. That blustery old man who sang at the top of his lungs, taught them how to ride a horses bareback, belch the alphabet, bait their own fishing hooks, pass a sobriety test when you were actually drunk, and how to play and cheat at poker. The same man who praised Scarlett when she was suspended from school for punching a boy in the nose who called Sue a bad name. The same man who beamed as he danced with Sue on her wedding day to the horrible country songs Will had picked out , who let Careen paint his nails anytime she wanted, and proudly passed out cigars out in the hospital when his teenaged daughter had given birth to his first grandchild.

Careen's voice faltered through her tears as she wiped her eyes .

"Keep singing , Baby. It's beautiful." Scarlett encouraged.

"I just don't want him to die, Sissy."

Scarlett reached her hand out to her sister. " I know, Baby, I know. None of us do. But we need to let him go. Mama's up there and she's waiting for him to come home."

Careen smiled at the thought of her beautiful mother waiting for her daddy with open arms and continued to sing until Gerald O'Hara passed peacefully, encircled by the loving arms of his three daughters, from this life and into the next.

STW

A week and half later she was happy to let the distractions caused by Ella's wedding carry her away. She embraced the chaos of having her home turned upside down for a four hour, one-time event. Sure Cat was overwhelmed with the noise and new people coming and going and Mrs. Fitz was running right behind every worker and delivery man demanding that they be careful not to break things and Forest had eaten eight pounds of raw shrimp and thrown them up at the base of the stairs and Bonnie was smoking weed in her bathroom while crying and reading a concerning amount of Sylvia Plath and Gerry was throwing tantrums because he couldn't climb the trees that were being brought in the house….so what….bring it on. She barely noticed that she had developed a cough until it turned into something nasty that had her bracing herself with her hands on her knees coughing up sticky globs of green and yellow mucus. But now, with all that behind her, she savored the moment. This moment.

Ella met her mother's eyes in the giant Boca do Lobo mirror.

"Mama, you promised…."

"I'm not crying." Scarlett lied as she fastened the last of the tiny mother-of-pearl buttons on the back of Ella's gown. She stood back to avoid stepping on the white satin train and asked Ella to turn around so she could see how she looked.

"Well?" Ella asked as she stood face to face with her mother.

Scarlett clenched her back teeth together and took a deep, steadying breath before speaking. " You are…the most beautiful thing….I have ever seen….in my entire life." She had to pause a bit between the words to regain her composure. Ella had begged her not to cry today before the ceremony.

"Mama, if you cry, I'll cry, and then I'll throw up and ruin my makeup", she had said.

There were two knocks at the door followed by Frank's voice asking if he could come in. He had taken three steps into the room and had to look down to hide his tears. Ella had him make the same promise.

"Daddy, don't."

His fair skin was splotched with red as he looked up at her. "I can't help it", he sobbed. " Ella, you are the best thing I ever did in my entire life."

He reached out and took Scarlett's hand in his. "Thank you", he said to her. "Thank you for this. I don't deserve this. I never did."

"Oh, Frank", was all Scarlett said before pulling him towards her and wrapping her arms around him while they both cried.

Some people don't believe in miracles. They'll tell you that they re nothing more than wishful thinking. But Ella Lorena Kennedy Watling witnessed one that day; on her wedding day no less. She didn't understand exactly what her father was saying, but only God Himself could make what she just witnessed, happen.

But like all miracles, this one was short lived. As soon as India came into the room, the Devine withdrew His hand from Scarlett and Frank.

"Oh, Ella, you look so pretty!" Behind her shuffled in the photographer and videographer that Scarlett had been avoiding all day.

She could hear the incessant clicking and the bright light of the flash and camera light as they circled Ella like vultures over a dying animal.

"Take one of Ella and me together", India demanded as she pushed her face against Ella's. Ella did her best to smile as her stepmother performed the act of the loving stepmother.

Belle quietly slipped into the room with the second cameraman behind her. He starting taking the same pictures, only from a different angle.

"Can we have one where you give your mom a kiss on the cheek?" he asked.

Scarlett, who was mid-sip on her glass of champagne, coughed and accidentally spit out the golden liquid onto Franks' tux.

"She's not my mother." Ella clarified.

India nervously laughed. "Well, I **am** like her second mother, after all."

Scarlett's cough grew deeper as she feel the last remnants of the phlegm sticking to the back of her throat. Frank slapped his hand across her back. She was already unsteady on her five inch Louboutins and the blow almost sent her to her knees.

"Whoa there." Belle said helping her to her feet. "You okay, there ?"

Scarlett pointed at India and tried to regain her voice. "In..dia….said…second….moth….fuc…." Belle cut her off mid-sentence and guided her out of the room.

"I'm going to take Scarlett outside to get some fresh air. Ella, you're a vision, sweetheart", she said as she left the room.

STW

Outside, leaning against the wall of the smaller of the two guest houses, Bonnie and her best friend talked as they passed a joint between them.

"Did he say anything to you today?" Prissy asked as Bonnie took a long drag and held her breath. She held the joint out to Prissy as she strained to speak without blowing the air out.

"He's avoiding me."

Prissy's eyes crossed as she watched the tip of paper glow red as she inhaled. Bonnie covered her laughter with her hand, ignoring the sound of dry grass being crunched underfoot behind her.

"You should see what you look like when you take a hit ", she laughed and mimicked Prissy's face.

Prissy began coughing as the air filled her lungs and squeaked out a strangled, " Shut up". Her voice, which always a high pitched sound took on a pitch so high that Bonnie was sure only dogs could hear.

Prissy's eyes flew open wide as Scarlett, with her perfectly manicured hands on her hips, walked up behind her daughter.

"Busted", Belle declared as she finally caught up with Scarlett's long strides and stood before two teenagers who were scared to death of the stoic, petite woman in the almost ten thousand dollar Badgley Mischka gown who glared at them.

Prissy held the joint out at a arms distance as though she were just as shocked as Scarlett was to find it there between her fingers.

Bonnie turned and faced her mother. She gave no explanation and simply looked at the ground beneath her.

Today was going to be hard for her, Scarlett knew it would be. Hadn't she had her own teenaged heart shattered at a wedding over twenty years ago? Her heart ached for her baby and as any mother would, she wished she could take the pain away and couldn't fault her for seeking some sort of comfort.

She put her hand under her daughter's chin and lifted her head. "I know it's hard seeing him but getting high is only going to make it worse."

Tears pooled in her big blue eyes as her bottom lip quivered at her mother's words. "He won't even talk to me, Mama. It's like he hates me."

"Trust me, my love, he doesn't hate you", Scarlett said as she wrapped her arms around her daughter. She buried her lips in the black curls that were identical to her own. "I know it hurts and you have every right to be upset but I need you to pull it together today for your sister. This is her day and we owe it to her to do everything we can to make it perfect."

"Are you mad….about the weed ?" Bonnie asked. Her arms were wound tight across her mother's waist as if she didn't want to let her go. Scarlett laughed a little at Bonnie's delayed onset of separation anxiety. As a toddler, Bonnie had to be forced to spend time with her mother and now at sixteen she had trouble letting her out of her sight.

"Consider this your one get out of jail free card."

Scarlett demanded that Prissy hand over the joint and told both girls go upstairs, put on some perfume to mask the musk of marijuana, and go make themselves useful helping Ella. Dutifully, the two delinquents rushed back up to the house thankful for their rare merciful pardon.

Scarlett watched as the girls giggled and disappeared from view. She flicked the ash from the tip of the rolled cigarette and blew softly on it, causing it to glow red.

"Seems like a shame to waste it." She said.

She peered around the corner of the back wall of the guest house to make sure no one was coming and brought the joint to her lips, taking in a long drag of smoke. She leaned her head against the bricks and held in the smoke for a long time before releasing it.

"You want a hit?" she asked Belle before covering her mouth with her elbow as she let out a deep cough.

Belle leaned next to Scarlett and greedily took the joint in her hand. "Hell yeah I want a hit ."

Neither woman remarked how they both were both obviously experienced weed smokers and passed the joint between them in silence; expertly drawing the smoke into their lungs and then slowly releasing it.

"You know, we're not all that different, Belle; you and me." Scarlett said.

Belle's voice was strangled as she tried to speak while holding in the smoke. " Uh… have you looked in the mirror?" She blew the smoke out and passed to Scarlett. " I'd say we're a whole lot different."

Scarlett inhaled and shook her to let Belle know that she wasn't getting her meaning.

"No, I mean that I don't judge you for your past profession. Well…. I should say that I don't judge you anymore for your past profession." They both laughed as Belle took the joint back. She took a nice, long drag as Scarlett continued.

"I get it. You were doing what you needed to do for your son."

Belle was quiet as she blew the smoke out and handed the joint back to Scarlett. Scarlett closed her eyes as she inhaled another massive amount and passed the joint back to Belle. They had smoked it down to the quick and passing it between them using their elegantly painted nails as pinchers. Belle supposed the paper had eventually burned her fingers but was too shocked by what Scarlett told her next to even notice it until two days later when she saw blistered burns on her thumb and forefinger.

" I did it too, you know. Had sex for money."

"You what? You turned tricks? When?"

"A long time ago. I was eighteen and our house was about to be foreclosed on by the bank for back taxes. We would have had nowhere to go if that'd happen and would've been basically out on the streets. I tried to get Phillipe to give me the money he had set aside in a trust fund for me when I was little but he wouldn't give it to me to do, in his words, something he said that should have been the responsibility of my dad. He told me to move to France and I wasn't going to do that, so I needed another option. I tried asking my Mom's father but he basically told me to fuck off and I became desperate. You know Jonas Wilkerson, right?" Belle nodded. "I went and asked him for help thinking, okay, here's my Dad's friend. Surely he'll be able to do something. He agreed to give me the money if I slept with him. So, I did."

Neither woman spoke. Belle was thinking of what she should say when Scarlett continued.

" I remember I threw up right after the first time I let him have sex with me for money. Didn't even make it to my car, threw up right there in the bushes outside his office. I was so disgusted with myself that I scrubbed my skin raw in the shower that night; used the hottest water possible.

But I kept going back. He was smart and didn't give the full amount right away. No, he set up a payment plan with the IRS and would pay the money in installments. This way he had me at his mercy for months. If I refused to come or not let him act out whatever sick fantasy he had, he'd threaten to not pay. He used my love for my baby as leverage. So once a week I'd show up at his office or wherever he wanted me and try to make my mind blank for however long he took to humiliate me. And I never told anyone. Ever. So I get it, Belle. I do."

Belle stood motionless. What could she say to this confession? She never told anyone? Not Rhett? Not Melanie even?

"I'm sorry that happened to you, Scarlett."

Scarlett shrugged her shoulders as if it were no big deal. "It's in the past."

"Do you believe in karma, Belle? In everyone getting the due and all that?" she asked.

"I suppose so. Why?"

Scarlett leaned her head back against the wall and looked up at the sky. "Because what you did to me with Rhett was nothing more than what I did to Melanie with Ashley. So in the end I guess you could say that I got exactly what was coming to me."

Belle crossed her arms to warm herself against the cool air. The flowing silk of her light yellow gown did little to protect her from the cold gusts of wind that blew through Georgia in the winter. "So you and Ashley did have an affair? All of what everyone was saying about the two of you was true?"

She turned her head to face Belle. Her face looked almost ethereal. Two perfect patches of blush were on the apples of her otherwise magnolia white complexion. The deep green of her gown was exquisite in contrast to her fair skin and dark hair and made the color of her eyes mesmerizing. No wonder Rhett had fallen under her spell the moment he had laid eyes on her. No wonder that Ashley Wilkes continued to lust after her.

"I never once cheated on Rhett with anyone, if that's what you're asking. I never cheated on either of my husbands. I wouldn't even sleep with Rhett until my divorce was finalized from Frank. No, Ashley and I had an affair right after Charles died but ended we ended it right before I married Frank."

"Who ended it?"

"I guess we both did in a way. We…..well, we loved a version of each other that never truly existed. It took me long enough to realize that. Almost cost me my marriage."

"Did Melanie ever find out? About the affair, I mean." Belle asked.

Scarlett slowly nodded her head yes.

"How?"

"I told her. Ashley didn't want me to but I couldn't keep something like that from her. Mel was more than just my best friend, she was more than a sister even. How could I not tell her? I told her everything. About how we grew up, about his promises to marry me before he went away to college, the way it killed me when he married her, even how I used poor Charlie to make him jealous. I laid everything on table." Scarlett said matter of factly.

Belle was confused. If Scarlett confessed to Melanie about having an affair with Ashley it obviously didn't affect their relationship. The two were inseparable for as long as she could remember. Wherever one was, the other would not be too far behind.

"Was she upset when she found out?"

Scarlett's eyes opened dramatically. "Was she upset?! She was furious! She told Ashley she wanted a divorce and called me some of the worst names I have ever been called in my life. She threw me out of her house. Like, literally pushed me out of the door, slammed it in my face and told me she never wanted to see me again. " She smiled a little as she continued. " But we got through it. It took some time, believe me. Oh, and me blowing out some guys brains in defense of us both played a big part in her forgiving me - but that's a different story. In the end though, our lives were so much better because we had each other. I was the only one with her when she died. It was almost as if she was waiting for me to be okay, to handle her death. So on that day when she was barely hanging on I laid next to her and held her hand and told her that she didn't need to worry about me anymore. I told her I'd take care of her baby and asked her to take care of mine. And there isn't a second that goes by that I don't miss her….It's funny in a way when you think about it."

"How so?"

Scarlett coughed a deep hacking cough that Belle thought sounded like a seal barking. " She'd get a kick out of us - you and me. Were kind of in the same situation too. She was the wife and I was mistress and with us it's the other way around. It makes sense."

"What does?"

"That we should end up being friends. Although I'm nowhere near as nice as Melly and you way more slutty than I ever was."

A smile spread across Belle's lips and she laughed deep and loud. "Scarlett, you are officially the most interesting person I have ever met in my entire life."

STW

To anyone who came to the wedding of Ella Kennedy and Tazwell Watling expecting to witness first hand the drama between Rhett Bulter's wife and his former mistress was sadly disappointed.

The ceremony itself was beautiful. Ella was stunning and everyone ooed and ahhhed and cried and cheered at all the right moments. The reception went off without a hitch with the bands keeping the mood light and happy. The New Orleans brass band was such a big hit that even old Rhett's mother was waving her handkerchief in the air during the second line.

The food was delicious and undoubtedly the star of the show. People sucked down oysters and devoured bowl after bowl of seafood gumbo. They ate boiled shrimp until they could no longer move and actually licked the rum sauce off of their empty plates of bread pudding. And when chef Emril Lagasse came out to toast the bride and groom, he received a standing ovation that lasted for two whole minutes. No one argued, no one fought. There were no grudges or resentments or enemies. No grief or sorrow or stress. For once, they were a normal, happy, blended family. And every single little girl dream that Ella ever had about her wedding came true that day.

STW

When Scarlett opened her eyes the next day it took all the strength she had just to turn her head to the side. She tried to cough but her mouth was so dry that all she could get out was a gurgle.

Before she could let out even a groan, she could feel strong hands lifting her head up and a glass of cool water being brought to her lips.

"Here, drink this." Rhett's voice was soft in her ears.

He pulled her up into a seating position and let her weak body lean across his chest and over his shoulder. "Cough", he told her as he clapped his hand repeatedly on her back.

She let out a cough that sounded horrible. Her wheezing breath was interposed with vestiges of fluid that caused her chest to rattle.

"Cough again", he demanded as he continued to try and break up the fluid.

She did and out came a glob of putrid green goo.

"Do you need to use the bathroom?" he asked her.

She shook her head no and rested her head along the curve of his neck. She could feel him lifting her into his arms and was too weak to protest.

"Whhhhhhheeerrreee…..we….goingggg?" she tried to say. Her arms felt like lead as they hung by her side. Her head lolled back like a doll, too heavy to keep up. She suddenly felt so sleepy. She kept slipping in and out of slumber so often that she wasn't sure if she was dreaming or if she was actually in Rhett's car. Voices filtered in and out of her conscious. Some she recognized, some she didn't.

"How bad?" A female voice asked. She could hear doors whooshing open, curtains being crawn back. A bright light shone through her closed eyelids.

"Bad", Rhett answered. Gordon said to bring her here as soon as she woke up."

Gordon?, she thought. She knew then that she was back in the emergency room. The damn emergency room. Again.

"You think you can get her to pee in this?" the female voice asked.

"Seriously? Didn't you just see me carry her in here?"

Scarlett shifted in his arms and used every ounce of strength she had to open her eyes. " I…. I can use the bathroom by…. myself. I'm actually… feeling a lot better", she lied.

Rhett picked her up and held her in his arms as he walked toward the bathroom. "Rhett, put me down. I can…. I can walk."

"The hell you can. I'm bringing you in there and that's that."

"Please, Rhett", her voice was small in his ear. " Don't carry me in there in front of everyone. Just help me walk, okay."

After twenty years of marriage, there was no embarrassment between them as he supported her upper body while she used the bathroom and collected her sample.

"Why didn't you tell me that you were so sick?" he quietly asked her. She didn't have it in her to respond and he pressed the issue no farther. As he held her up, he could feel the rattle in her chest as she breathed against him. He cursed himself for not noticing it earlier. She had to have been sick for days, weeks even.

She looked unbelievably beautiful yesterday, so beautiful that she almost took away the focus from the bride herself. But he could see that under the make-up she was not well. Her eyes were not as bright and her cheeks were sallow and sunken. He felt her tremble in his arms as he danced with her and knew it wasn't from emotion. She smiled the whole time but he wasn't fooled. The heat radiating from her body as he held her close told him that she had a fever. As soon as the song ended Rhett waltzed her right off of the dance floor and up to Gordon Meade who was slurping down his second bowl of shrimp and grits and had him give her a quick once over. It is was very fortunate for Rhett that she was in a good mood or she would have reacted most unfavorably to the fact that one of the guests at their daughter's wedding was placing the back of his palm on her forehead and putting his ear to her back to listen as she breathed.

"I'll call in a prescription for an antibiotic right now. Have someone pick it up in about an hour and make sure that she takes it. I'm be in the ER tomorrow morning by 7. I want to see her the second she wakes up, understood?"

Scarlett clung to Rhett as she walked back to the bed and once there, curled atop it. He sat in the uncomfortable chair and ran his hand over a day's growth of a beard. He watched helplessly as her body began trembling. He signaled the nurse to bring in more blankets and got in to the bed with his wife, wrapping his arms around her to share his own body heat. He didn't need to look up to feel Gordon Meade's eyes burning into his head as he walked into the room as saw him on the bed with Scarlett.

"Congratulations, you have pneumonia."

He sounded angry. Maybe at Rhett, maybe at Scarlett, maybe at them both? Who knew.

"How can you tell? You haven't even seen her yet." Rhett asked, meeting Gordon's anger with his own.

Gordon eyed Rhett and sat on the opposite side of Scarlett. He placed the rubber tipped eartubes of his stethoscope in his ears and motioned for Scarlett to lean forward. He blew his hot breath on the diaphragm to warm it before reaching under her shirt and placing it on her back.

"Don't need to", he told Rhett. "Her sputum test came back full of nasty bacteria. I know a chest x-ray would tell us the same thing so it's pointless to put her through it. She has pneumonia. Trust me."

He lowered her shirt and moved his hand to feel her pulse.

"Scarlett, can you hear me?" he asked her after he rose to his feet and began typing something into a laptop.

She opened her eyes slowly. "Yes, Gordon. I can hear you."

"You have two choices, young lady. Either I send you home after pumping you full of antibiotics and with a nebulizer to use twice a day and strict instructions to rest for at least two entire weeks or I admit you into the hospital until the infection clears up. It's your choice."

"Oh", he continued as if he had forgotten to mention something. "And since you have a history of ignoring doctor's orders, I'm only releasing you home if Rhett agrees to stay with you the entire time. Not just during the day or when it's convenient for the all mighty Miss O' Hara, but all the time. Twenty-four seven. He needs to watch you. This could develop into something worse if we're not careful and you are never careful. And going off the results of your urine analysis, I'm sure the marijuana you smoked recently didn't help your condition either so there's your poor judgement to consider too. Make your choice, home under strict supervision or hospital."

Of course she chose the latter and after being given three shots and implicit instructions to rest, get plenty of fluids, and take her medications on time , she was sent home.

They were both quiet as they drove along the familiar streets toward their home.

"Are you cold?" he asked her as he fingered the knobs to heater.

She shook her head no and leaned her head against the space between her seat and the door frame.

"You don't need to stay with me, Rhett. I have plenty of people at home to help me."

"Are you serious, Scarlett? Of course I'm going to take care of you. Why wouldn't I?"

"I know, Rhett. I know all about her. There's no point in lying anymore."

"What? What do you know?" he asked, uncertain of what she said.

She sighed as deeply as she could given the condition of her lungs. "M.S., Rhett. I know about M.S. I'd hate to be the reason you two couldn't see each other for two weeks. I know all about what has been going on."

Rhett felt his blood turn cold. How could she know about her? M.S. had been a thorn in his side since he had made the soul-crushing mistake of sleeping with her all those years ago. She was a fungus to him, a pest that refused to disappear and instead further complicated his life by bulling Rhett into continual meetings and blackmailing him for large sums of money in return for her silence. He figured that, from Scarlett's calm demeanor and from the fact that she had called her M.S. instead of her real name, she still didn't know the true identity of the woman. If she did, he was sure that she would have shot him. One hundred ninety percent sure. M.S. was a code name. A name she had given herself. She had begun to use it in the early days of their correspondence. She had laughed when she told him what it stood for. In that moment was when he began truly hating her. He hated her more than anyone he had ever hated in his entire life. More than his own father even. He knew she had to feel his hatred as she leaned over his shoulder and pressed play on his computer, showing him the secret video she recorded of them screwing. He wanted to throw up as he watched. He clearly could make out his face and hers too as both of their bodies moved against each other in rhythm. She was as cold and calculating as Satan himself and planned her seduction and its aftermath in advance. He wanted to kill her, to blow her brains out, to slice her throat open from ear to ear and watch as her blood spilled from her lifeless body when she taunted him with the evidence.

"Do what I say and I'll make sure that your beautiful wife will never see this and finds out that the love of her life still likes to stick it in other women."

But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was the duplicity involved between the three of them. Scarlett **DID** know M.S. She knew her very well in fact.

No, he thought to himself as Scarlett closed her eyes in the seat next to him. She didn't know the true identity of M.S., she only knows of her, not who she is.

Rhett sighed a breath of relief. He would make up an identity for her. He wouldn't tell Scarlett the truth. He would tell her **ANYTHING** but the truth. Above all, this must be kept from her.

She could **NEVER** find out who M.S. really was.

STW

Rhett handed over the keys to his Porsche to one of the newer members of the staff. He had no clue the boy's name and instead of a personalized greeting he nodded…just like the asshole he was sure they all thought he was.

"Everything okay, Mrs. Butler?" he asked with true concern in his voice.

"Yes, Jamie. I'm fine. Just a bad cold, she answered.

Rhett offered her his hand as she exited the car. She gripped it tightly to steady her balance and then shook off his attempts at further help. He noticed that Jaime looked as though he was ready to jump in and grab Scarlet if she should need him to.

Typically, Rhett would feel irked that this boy felt comfortable enough to even thinking about touching his wife but instead he watched with his own barely concealed trepidation as Scarlett slowed the gait in her stride as she attempted to walk unaided.

"Dammit, Scarlett, let me help you."

He felt her relax into his strong arms. " Please, Rhett. Lower your voice. I don't want to scare the kids. Don't make a big deal out of this in front of them."

They had walked no farther than ten steps before walking into the breakfast room in full chaos. Mrs. Fitz threw her hands in the air as she saw them. "There you are! I was worried sick !"

Phillipe sat in his tailored blue pajamas daintily holding a tiny cup of espresso. He was seated a little too closely to Lou. She paid him no attention and instead sat quietly sipping a disgusting looking green drink with large chunks of something floating in it while wearing her sunglasses.

Gerry was pouring cereal directly on the floor for Forest. Lou did nothing to stop him. Before Scarlett could ask where Cat was, she opened her mouth to speak. Her voice was gravelly low.

"Katherina refuses breakfast and I am not in moods to fight."

Phillipe laughed at this.

"Lou a bu au travail. Qui est la merde maintenant?"

Lou seethed in his direction. "You think I do not speak French? I speak five languages I'll have you know , you, Arschloch! Frau said to me to enjoy the wedding after the Baby liebt was asleep . So I enjoy then!"

Frau. She had called Scarlett Frau. She was most certainly suffering from a horrible hangover. It was only in these moments that she seemed to become even more German.

Bonnie rubbed her tired, red-rimmed eyes and yawned. She slurped her coffee from a large mug cradled in her hands. "Where'd you two go this early?"

Scarlett eased herself into an empty chair at the table and felt pain as her shoulder blades moved against the hard wood. She lifted her palm to wordlessly decline Mrs. Fritz's offer of coffee but accepted a slice of toast instead.

"I just had to go to the doctor for some medicine for my cough." She met Bonnie's sad eyes with her own. Today would be even harder for her than yesterday. "How are you though?" she asked.

Scarlett knew that Beau had left today for school up north. She knew Bonnie's heart was shattered into a million little pieces.

"I'm okay", Bonnie lied.

Gerry, now aware of his mother's presence, climbed into her lap and placed his small hands on the sides of her face.

"You sick? Mommy, do you need snuggle puppy?" he asked.

Scarlett pulled him into a tight hug and kissed the top of his head. "Maybe just for a little while if you can spare him. Thank you for offering , Tootsie, I know how much he means to you."

Gerry eagerly slid down her lap, happy that he had just the thing to make his mommy feel better. Snuggle puppy was a worn-out stuffed dog with a missing eye and a mismatched ear that Mammy had sewn on after Forest got ahold of him and decided that he was a chew toy. According to Gerry, Snuggle Puppy had magical powers that could cure any illness and fix any wrong. He was perfect for nightmares, shots that mean doctors gave you, yucky medicine that tasted awful, and nights spent away from his mommy. He was originally a stuffed toy given by Bonnie to his older brother just before he died. And since R.J. was an angel in heaven now, he left behind Snuggle Puppy for his future little brother to take care of.

"Hi daddy", he called out as he ran as fast as his little legs could carry him up the stairs and into the nursery.

Rhett smiled at his son, the only person so far to actually acknowledge his presence.

Scarlett placed her face in her palms and slumped her shoulders as soon as he exited the room.

"Quel est vraiment le problème?" Phillipe asked her in French.

She was too exhausted to chastise him for being rude and speaking in a language that not everyone understood.

"Pneumonia", she said quietly. "I have pneumonia."

Phillipe turned to face his daughter as he spoke. " Et lui ?" he said as he gestured towards Rhett. " Il est autour de toi, tu es blessé, Katie Je n'aime pas ça Pas un bit. J'aimerais qu'il te laisse tranquille."

Scarlett's voice was muffled behind her hands. "Please, Phillipe. Not now."

Rhett sensed that he was being talked about in a none too flattering manner and cleared his throat drawing Phillipe's attention toward him.

"Something you want to say to me, Phillipe? Obviously Scarlett is not well and I think you'll agree that she doesn't need some sort of lecture right now. So if you have something to say, say it to me."

Phillipe rose from his chair and walked directly up to Rhett. His green eyes were alight with the same fire that he had passed down to his daughter and grandchildren. " Yes, actually I do."

Scarlett groaned and laid her head onto her crisscrossed arms that were folded atop the table.

" _Tranquille_ ? Know that word in French? It means alone. I want you to leave my daughter alone. Every time I find you with her, she hurts. You hurt her heart, her soul, her poor body. When will it be enough? When you finally kill her? If it were up to me, you'd be long gone by now. You do not deserve her. Not one bit."

Before Rhett could respond, Gerry appeared with his beloved Snuggle Puppy in tow. "Here, Mommy", he said proudly presenting the battered plush toy to his mother.

"Thank you, Tootsie. I feel better already." Scarlett smiled as she hugged the puppy close to her cheek.

Rhett watched as his son mirrored his wife's dimpled smile. He was a good enough poker player to know when to fold. He would see that his wife was safely tucked under blankets and resting before he willingly sat before Phillipe and let him reign down all the accusations and insults he wanted. After all, he was the father of a rebellious and hard headed, breathtakingly beautiful girl too. It could just as easily be him sitting at his son in laws table accusing him of hurting his little girl.

Much later, after sharing a drink stronger than espresso with his father-in-law and passively listening to all his pent up grievances, Rhett walked quietly down the long hall in the west wing to check on his sleeping wife. She had taken her noon breathing treatment and said she was going to lie back down. Rhett turned the knob to their bedroom and squinted his eyes as he adjusted to the low lighting. The metal of Forest's collar jangled and alerted Rhett to the gentle behemoth sleeping on his bed.

"What are you doing on the bed?" he whispered as he scratched behind his velvety smooth ears. "She's been letting you sleep up here the whole time I've been gone? You've been her protector from the nightmares? Good boy."

He looked at the sleeping tableau sprawled across his bed and smiled. Scarlett was tangled in the sheets with Gerry snuggled up to her, his face in hers, sharing her pillow, sucking his thumb, his hand in her hair. Cat was pressed against Scarlett's back on the other side, her body stretched out and limbs splayed while Bonnie's head rested between her sister's right leg and her mother's hip. Snuggle Puppy was held tightly in her embrace.

He realized that It wasn't just Forest here protecting her. They all were. All the kids, Phillipe, the staff, Ashley, her sisters, Gordon, even Belle now held her close, trying like hell to keep her safe. Safe from harm, safe from hurt…..and most importantly, safe from ….him.

He felt a tight touch on his sleeve, pulling him back to reality.

"Excuse me, sir, but Mr. Hamilton is downstairs and would like to have a word."

"Of course. Tell him that I'll be right down."

STW

Henry Hamilton, Scarlett's favorite uncle, who wasn't even her uncle, stood in the front entryway waiting for him. He looked as though he had just came from court or some other work related affair. Being that it was a Sunday, Rhett could have figured that he had come from church but he knew the implausibility of that. Henry was as likely to be found in church as Rhett was.

"Henry", Rhett said as he shook his hand. "What brings you here on a Sunday of all days?"

Henry's overgrown eyebrows pushed together across his wrinkled forehead. "I need to talk to you. It's important." His eyes darted around the room suspiciously. "Is there somewhere we can speak in private?" he asked.

"Sure, we can go into my office but Scarlett's not feeling well and is resting. I don't want to wake her if I can help it."

"That's fine. I wanted to speak with you and not her anyway."

STW

He hadn't been in his home office in what seemed like forever. The lingering smell of cigar smoke and cologne was gone and was now replaced by a clean scent that gave off the pungent odor of disinfectant. He motioned for Henry to sit in one the chairs near the window and slid down the slippery leather of his newly cleaned couch.

"What can I do for you, Henry?"

Henry was a straight -shooter. It was something Rhett liked about him. They wouldn't spend wasteful time trying to gently get the point. "What can you tell me about the incident that got you expelled from West Point?"

Rhett shrugged his shoulders. " I was expelled for fighting with another cadet. End of story."

"End of story? Nothing more you'd like to add?"

"No."

"How about the fact that you didn't just get into a fight with another cadet. You almost killed him."

Rhett frowned at the memory and became defensive. " He's lucky I didn't kill him. He was beating his girlfriend; strangling her almost! What was I supposed to do? Just stand there and let him kill her?"

Henry raised his hands in defeat. "Don't get so defensive, Rhett. I just wanted to know your version of the story."

"What do you mean, my version of the story? That IS the story ! There's no other version available. Why are you even asking me this?"

" I'm asking you this so that I can be prepared to address the inevitable backlash that is sure to come once this information gets out."

He rose from his seat on the chair and stood before his niece's beautiful portrait. He drew in a deep breath before continuing.

"Rhett, I have a friend over at Lawe and associates. He warned me that Michael's attorneys have latched onto information concerning your discretion and going to use it to paint you as a racist.

Rhett firmly pushed against his thighs and stood to face Henry.

"A racist? How? For coming to the aid of a poor girl that was getting the shit beat out of her?"

Henry shook his head. " They couldn't care less about the reason why you hit the kid. They are only going to focus on the fact that he is black and the girl is white. You see where I am going with this?"

Rhett paced the floor in his office; his starched clean office that held no trace of him and loudly declared his prolonged absence from the house.

"So what. Let them say what they want. You said it yourself that there's not a shred of evidence for any of their claims."

"Rhett, this is BIGGER than this case, don't you see that ?! Tell me, how's your business been doing Rhett? How's your portfolio these days?"

Rhett pushed his hands in his pockets. Business had not been doing well. Since the whole fiasco began with Michael and then with the women saying he raped them, he had lost some pretty substantial clients that put a considerable dent in the profits and holdings of Butler enterprises. And that wasn't all. He received hate mail constantly and was even once berated on the streets by a group of pock marked teens that called him the worst of names as he stumbled into the nearest building for shelter. His car had to be parked inside the garage building at his condo because it was continually egged and he had not one, but three death threats made against his life. It seemed that his face was in the news constantly now, either as the topic of conversation or the butt of some late night comedians joke. It didn't matter if there was no evidence to prove him guilty of racism or sexual assault. He had already been tried and convicted as guilty in the court of public opinion.

"I don't even care about the company anymore, Henry. I'd soon as sell it and take my losses."

" Let's say you do that. Say that you even find someone with enough money to buy your firm. They wouldn't be able to pay you nearly enough what it's worth. And what about your steady source of income? You have millions in bank accounts to live on but what about when that runs out? And trust me, it will. Your wife's purse alone costs as much as my first car. And what about your brother? Your sister and mother? All the people you employ? What will not having a job do to them? Do you think that your children will like being put on a budget? That Bonnie will handle being told no? And Scarlett? You think you handing over your business, something you worked so hard for, is going to go over well with her? Yes, her business isn't affected, not yet anyway, but it will be. Then what?"

Rhett sat back down on the couch and put his head in his hands. " Then, what do we do, Henry? How do we fight this?"

"First, we acknowledge that you did leave West Point due to fighting. We tell your side of the story and try like hell to get access to the closed records the school has on the incident. All West Point will say is that it happened and give basic demographics such as the boy's race and that there was a girl involved. That's all they legally can say. But that's enough. Lawe will be able to sniff out all the details easily enough. However, as a school though, West Point has a legal obligation to report on the incident in detail. Those records will include all the information to corroborate your story but there's no way we can access them without a judicial warrant. That in itself presents with a massive problem but without that information, it's going to be damn hard to clear your name in the eyes of the public. You're going to take a massive financial hit. You both will. Scarlett will most likely lose her business completely. If we can't access the files and prove the reason you beat the kid up was because he was beating on his girlfriend and was not racially motivated…I can only think of one idea that may save your companies but I don't think either one of you will like it."

Rhett sat silently, willing him to continue.

"You'll need to get divorced."

Rhett shot up from his seat and rushed toward Henry.

"Now listen first before you react. You need to think. There's no pre-nuptial agreement between the two of you. She has the ability to get everything in the event of your dissolved marriage. We would need for her to file for divorce on the grounds of mental anguish and state in the terms decided upon in mediation that you both agree that she gets Butler Enterprises. You appear to get what's coming to you, Scarlett is seen to be the vindicated brave ex-wife of an abuser, and everyone gets to keep their jobs and their money."

"No. There has to be another way", Rhett said as he gazed as the grand portrait of his beautiful wife. Her eyes, which he once regarded as sexy and alluring were now accusatory. Now that she knew about M.S. a divorce may be the end result regardless of what would happen with his business.

"Then we need access to those files at West Point." Henry stated flatly.

"You said that there was a problem with that? What is it?" Rhett questioned.

Henry supported the weight of his body against the hard edge of an antique oak desk.

"We would need a judicial warrant and the judge for that jurisdiction isn't likely to do you or me any favors."

"Why?" Rhett asked.

" Because I doubt Judge Charles Hamilton Sr. will lift a finger to help out the husband of the woman he blames for his son's death and his daughter's estrangement. Despite being my brother."


	31. Chapter 31

Here you go :) Feed me more comments ! I love them !

"Are you nervous?" Aimee said as she wrapped her long naked leg around Wade's waist. Wade rubbed her soft, smooth skin in lazy circles. This was their first morning together since "officially" moving in together. Wade's classes were pretty much over. This was his last semester at Harvard and he only had evidence, criminal procedure, and trusts/wills left to take. That and study for the bar. These classes were pretty much blow offs and since the adjuncts teaching the courses allowed for electronic submissions and were lax on class attendance when it came to the seniors, Wade decided to not renew his lease for the studio apartment he rented near campus and suggested to Aimee that they move in together.

They must have looked at four dozen apartments before deciding on a cramped two bedroom apartment with paper thin walls, crabby neighbors, and intermittent heat.

Neither he or Aimee wanted to rely on the financial help of their parents and relished the opportunity to "make it on their own".

To outsiders, the apartment looked crappy and maybe even a bit dilapidated, but to them, it was perfect. Their furniture came from yard sales and antique shops, and even in the case of their kitchen bar stools, someone's thrown out trash. They had mismatched dishes and only one huge pot in which to cook everything in. Their one bathroom was a mismatch of colors and fixtures; all seemingly thrown together in a rush of necessity by former tenants. And each time you turned on the stove a foul smell permeated the entire apartment. But they loved it. They loved spending nights snuggled up on their fire sale couch eating Ramen noodles and watching Stranger Things on Ella's Netflix account. They loved washing dishes together and dreaming of the days when they would once again have the luxury of a dishwasher. They loved the impromptu suds fights that would turn from playful to passionate in the blink of the eye. They loved the endless games of spoons and battle they would play while waiting for their clothes to wash and dry at the laundromat down the street and the sweet little Italian ladies who owned the deli next down the street and plied them full of deli meats and some of the best meatballs they had ever eaten in their life. But most of all, they loved slipping out their bedroom window and sitting on the steps of the fire escape, wrapped in each other's arms, drinking glasses of cheap wine, and listening to the sounds of the city.

When they learned that Beau would be attending Columbia they were more than happy to offer him their spare room in return for a small monthly monetary contribution to the bills. Beau was new to the city and knew no one other than Wade and Aimee and gladly jumped at the opportunity given to him by his cousin and his fiancé.

Beau proved to be the ideal roommate. He went to school full-time and worked most nights and weekends bar tending at a couple of bars downtown. He was rarely at the apartment other than to sleep and shower and kept mostly to himself when he was. He never complained, bought and made his own food, cleaned up after himself, kept his television and music low, and was fine with whatever decisions Aimee and Wade made. If they were thinking clearly and not floating on the soft, billowy clouds of love, it would have been easy for Aimee or Wade to see that he was depressed and living in the fog of his own misery. Wade knew that his miserable state had something to do with Bonnie and he hesitated to involve himself in that situation.

In fact, he most interaction he had with Beau since he moved in with them was when he shared his plan to meet with their grandparents. Beau thought it was a terrible idea and told Wade so. But Wade was determined and Beau wasn't about to let him do this on his own.

"It's not that I'm nervous about meeting them, It's just I feel this weird feeling about going to the house my dad grew up in. It makes him real to me in a way he never was before. Does that sound crazy to you?" he asked.

"No. You never knew him and you said your mom rarely talked about him to you. He's kind of a stranger to you."

She was right. The sparse information he had about his father was given to him mostly by his Aunt Melly and not his mother. The only father figure he had ever known was Rhett.

Wade ran his hand up the smooth length of her thigh. "Is Beau up yet?" he asked.

"I heard him get into the shower a couple of minutes ago."

Wade made a little growling noise as he quickly moved her underneath him.

"Perfect", he said as he placed tender little kisses along her neck and collarbone. "That gives us just enough time."

STW

"Well don't you look like shit", Belle said as she slid down the Chintz fabric of the chair across from Scarlett in the bright sun room.

Scarlett raised her eyebrow in disgust at Belle's comment. She knew she didn't look her best. In fact, she knew she looked tired….and…..old….and…..fat. Technically, she had recovered from the pneumonia but its effects still lingered. Her recovery was a long slow process that stretched across the days and then weeks. During which time she was subjected to numerous pokes, prods, x rays, and repeated rounds of oxygen therapy. Because of her previous pneumothorax she was given a cocktail of drugs, one of which was a Corticosteriod, that were intended to decrease the inflammation in her lungs while relieving any undue pressure that was being placed on them. In the past she had been able to cajole and convince her primary care doctor into prescribing her an alternative to the steroid, but this time, because of Gordon Meade's incessant interference, there was no question as to her taking the drug. Within days of ingesting the small, white pills she began to experience the disastrous side effects that come with steroids and became ravenous. She seemed to only hunger for one thing: **CARBS**. Loads and loads of carbs.

Scarlett had always watched her weight. She couldn't even remember the last time that she wasn't on a diet. She didn't inherit Careen's natural propensity to slenderness and had to be mindful of every calorie she put in her mouth. Carbohydrates were explicitly banned from her diet, as was refined sugar, and were viewed as public enemy #1. Her trainer liked to say that abs were made in the kitchen and not the gym. He was a cruel, sadistic fucker that seemed to enjoy debasing her on a weekly basis. She'd be in the middle of a rep of squats, sweating like a whore in church, and he'd choose that moment to tell her that little gem or that her ass looked fat or that her face was fuller.

Only those close to her knew that it wasn't her genes, although they certainly did help, that perfected every inch of her body; it was her large sums of disposable income that enshrined her beauty in a chemical and surgical fountain of youth. She had a team of experts behind her. Keeping Scarlett beautiful was a communal effort and not for the faint of heart. There was a private chef who only cooked for her; focusing on healthy fats and using only organic products, a personal trainer she met with five days a week in her own private gym that rivaled the ones downtown, a nutritionist, a masseuse, a plastic surgeon on retainer for the times when the only method to remove the fat was having it sucked out, hair stylists and colorists, manicurists, personal shoppers, eyelash technicians, dermatologists, cosmetologists, aestheticians, you name it - they were at her beck and call. However, due to recent illness and recovery, they all sat in limbo waiting for her return.

"Are you feeling any better?" Belle asked once she realized her blunder in mentioning Scarlett's atypical appearance.

"Much."

"Well, that's all that matters."

Scarlett's smile was forced and tight.

"Is something else wrong?"

She reached down and brought a box filled with letters and placed them on the table in front of her. She ran her fingers through the open slits of the envelopes.

"For years I believed that my mother died from meningitis. I only recently learned that she really died from a heroin overdose. These are letters she exchanged with Phillipe over a series of years. I've been reading through them and can't find one single clue that alludes to her being a Heroin addict. In fact, they show her to be content and happy with the way things turned out. I don't get it. Shouldn't there be some sort of clue in them?"

"Maybe not. Addicts are really good at hiding things they don't want people to see."

Scarlett pulled one letter from her its cream colored envelope and held it in her fingers. "This is the last letter she wrote to him. It's dated three days before she died. She talks about the new baby: my sister Careen, expected cotton yields for that year, and even mentions taking a trip to France with me to visit him. Does this sound like a woman who's strung out on heroin? And another thing is that I don't have any memories of her being loaded or even drunk. Not one. Isn't that odd?"

Belle chose her words carefully. She knew from personal experience that no child wanted to think of their parent as a drug addict.

"Drugs can change a person, Scarlett. It doesn't matter what plans they have for the future or even if they have children to care for; the drugs always come first."

She grabbed Scarlett's hand and held it tenderly. "Listen, I love my son more than life itself but it still wasn't enough to keep me from doing lines every day while he was growing up. I'm sure your mother, like me, thought she had it under control. No one chooses to overdose, they just do."

Scarlett sadly nodded. "It's just so hard to accept."

"I know", Belle said softly.

"Now let's change the topic to something much more fun. Baby Shower planning !" She pulled out a yellow legal pad and a pen and placed it between them. "I looked at Pinterest and I still can't find a cute gender neutral theme. This would be so much easier if they would just find out what they're having."

"I agree!"

After the initial shock of becoming grandmothers had worn off, the two women were more than accepting of the impending arrival of their grandchild. Some would even go so far to say they were excited. Belle was convinced that the baby was a boy and imagined cheering him on at little league games, playing dinosaurs, and receiving sticky sweet little boy kisses. Scarlett, on the other hand, believed that the baby was a girl and entertained ideas of dressing her in pink frills and lace. This difference of opinion led to Ella being the recipient of baby items in both blue and pink. Every time her mother or mother in law saw her, another tiny, adorable outfit would be given to her. " I just had to get this for the baby", they'd say. Ella didn't mind and loved all the presents for her baby. She kept each one and placed them in a large plastic tub with no intention of returning them. Despite the gender of this baby, she knew that they'd have another – hopefully one of the other gender. She and Taz wanted a big family. "At least three", they had said.

Both of their mothers pressured them to find out the baby's gender but eventually supported their decision to let it be a surprise. They would have agreed to anything after they saw the little misshapen alien creature on one of the scans Ella had invited them to. Ella looked at the ultrasound tech apologetically as both her mother and mother in law cried and declared that it was the most beautiful thing they had ever seen. When the tech enabled the 3-D feature, and they could all clearly see the baby sucking its thumb and then removing it, splaying out its tiny fingers in an almost wave, the two grandmas-to-be lost control.

"First grandbaby?" the tech asked as she waved the wand over Ella's expanding belly.

"Yes", Ella said with a smile. And just because she was enjoying this overly dramatic display of emotion in both women she added fuel to the fire by saying to them both, "Look, the baby is saying, Hi Grandma. I can't wait to meet you."

Ella was now twenty two weeks pregnant making it the perfect time to begin planning the baby shower. Happiness practically oozed from them in doing this. Ella said that she wanted the whole thing to be a surprise and only asked that they not go too overboard. "Something simple. Promise me, Mama. Nothing crazy, okay?"

They had decided that It would take place in the garden of the mansion. It would be Spring by them and all the flowers would be in bloom. The food would be light refreshments, canapes, fresh fruit and fromage. They'd serve tea sandwiches and fruit tarts and petite fours covered in pink, blue, and yellow icing. Scarlett had already ordered several cases of Veuve for the champagne cocktails and mocktails. All they needed now was a theme. The only problem was that most baby shower themes were decidedly for either a girl or boy. The gender neutral ones seemed to them to be tacky and overdone and so their planning was at a standstill until the perfect theme presented itself.

Scarlett drummed the tips of her fingers against her temples as she thought. " What about a Dr. Seuss theme?" she asked Belle.

Belle wrinkled her nose in displeasure.

''Yeah", Scarlett agreed. "I don't like that idea too much either."

"Noah's Arc?" Belle suggested.

Scarlett's face twisted up a bit and she let out a deep cough into the crook of her arm. At the sound of the cough Rhett appeared.

"Scarlett." Rhett's voice was both stern and tender as he walked into the room. " Honey, you need to wear the mask. Your immune system is still too weak for full exposure to germs."

Belle, obviously the germ carrier Rhett was speaking of, said nothing as she watched him fuss over his wife.

So he was still here. Ella had mentioned that he would be staying at the house with Scarlett while she recovered but Scarlett had "recovered" weeks ago and here he still remained.

"Rhett, I really don't want to", Scarlett said weakly to him. "It reminds me of Melly….the way she looked before she died."

Rhett lowered himself to her eye level. He took her hand in his and kissed it. "I know, Baby. But you know what the doctor said. You have to get better. Please wear the mask. For me, at least. Please do it for me."

Belle watched with poorly concealed bewilderment and if she was honest, a little bit of jealousy, as Scarlett tucked the loose strands of hair behind her ears and leaned forward, presenting her face to her husband.

"Do you mind If I borrow this?" he asked Belle as he reached for her pen.

Rhett didn't wait for an answer and drew a toothy grin on the front of a light blue antiviral mask. He gently tucked the earloops around Scarlett's ears and smiled. "There. Melly never wore masks like these. These are Scarlett O' Hara originals."

He placed his hands on either side of her face and held them there. "Thank you", he whispered to her.

Belle had lived most of her years questioning the notion of soul mates and of total and complete love. Aside for a parent's love for their child, she didn't believe it existed. She believed that mutual romantic love existed on a time limit and was something akin to Santa Claus – a precious fantasy told to children. Watching Scarlett and Rhett right now shook those beliefs to the core. These two loved each other. Maddingly and fully loved each other. Turns out, it really does exist. And it is just as painful as Belle always thought it would be.

She watched as Scarlett leaned her cheek against Rhett's palm.

"Please don't wear yourself out." He said as he ran his thumb along her cheekbone.

"If she looks tired, please let me know."

Belle figured he was speaking to her but was unsure as his eyes never left his wife's face.

Belle said that she would and watched as he walked out of the room.

She turned her eyes toward Scarlett and raised her eyebrows, giving her a questioning look.

Scarlett's voice was muffled behind the stiff fabric as she spoke, her eyes lowered and almost making her look a little guilty. "It's complicated, Belle."

STW

Beau leaned his head back against the smooth leather of the headrest. He knew this was a fools mission. There was no way their grandfather would help them. This whole venture would be pointless and would more than likely have them more stressed than they were initially. Wade agreed with him but said he had to at least try. Wade knew that FERPA laws would protect any information concerning a student's educational records. Even his grandfather, judge extraordinaire, wouldn't be able to legally access those files without due cause. But Wade also knew how the system worked and had seen many times how the right amount of money could grease the wheels of justice. They weren't going to bribe anyone today, they were just going to have dinner and simply…..ask.

Wade had never met his paternal grandparents. He had seen them a few times in his life. And by seen them, that was exactly all that it was : seeing them, but he never met them. Both times he had seen them, they never said hello, never greeted him, never even acknowledged him.

Not that they treated Beau any better; but at least his existence was recognized by them.

When Beau phoned his grandmother to tell her that both he and Wade now lived in New York he was doing so with an ulterior motive. His grandmother's good breeding would force her to invite her two grandsons to dinner and that is exactly what she did.

The two young men set up a plan to meet, dine, and finally to request legal help from their grandfather in the case against Rhett; de facto saving two businesses from going under. It was a long shot at best.

While Beau seemed indifferent, Wade was terrified.

"Tell me what they're like", Wade asked for the third time.

His hands gripped the steering wheel with such ferocity that his knuckles were white. His eyes were super focus on the road ahead of him as if maintaining hyper concentration would make this task easier.

"They're okay, I guess. But, I told you already. I barely know them myself. After my mom died, I think I only saw or heard from them five or so times."

"They really hated Uncle Ashley that much?"

"Yes, but not as much as they hated Aunt Scarlett."

It was unfair how the Hamilton's , sans Uncle Henry and Aunt Pitty of course, blamed Scarlett for the destruction of their once seemingly perfect family. She didn't cause Charles' death any more than she forced Melanie to limit her contact with them.

Not that Scarlett cared, mind you. She supposed they needed someone to blame and that someone just so happened to be her and that was the end of it. Her opinion was that if they refused to see her son then that was their loss, not hers and most certainly not Wade's.

" _Danger, Will Robinson_." Wade's geeky ring tone blasted through the car. He pressed the answer call button on his steering wheel immediately. Beau teased him ferociously about his love for classic sci fi t.v. shows and Wade was no mood to hear it.

"Hello"

"Hey, you called?" Bonnie. Her voice sounded so much like his mother's and surrounded them both in a warm blanket of familiarity. Wade remembered Beau and looked over to him and mouthed "I'm sorry." Beau waved his hand in dismissal, desperately trying to feign indifference while his heart was being torn to shreds at the sound of her voice.

"Yeah. I wanted to call and check on mom. How's she doing?"

"A lot better. I just left the house and she was busy planning Ella's baby shower with Miss Belle."

"You just left the house? You're not talking to me while you're driving, are you?" he asked.

"Aren't you talking to me while driving too? Besides, I'm not Ella."

She was right. Ella was probably one of the worst drivers in Atlanta. Scarlett and Belle worried obsessively about the safety of the baby and were on the hunt for the best car seat money could buy.

Bonnie had heard them speaking to some representative of some car seat company on her way out today. She could hear as the man answered their questions in heavily accented English over the speakerphone when she kissed her mother goodbye.

 _" I'm interested in your Recaro Start Zero Alto RC 550.07. I see that it has impeccable head protection from side impact."_

 _"Yes. It's state of the art."_

 _"Wonderful. I was wondering if you could answer a few questions for me." Scarlett asked._

 _"Of course."_

 _"How would this car seat fare in the event of extreme impact. Say, by being hit by a train?"_

 _"Or falling from a helicopter?" Belle included._

 _"Or during an atomic blast?"_

 _The poor man's breathing became audible as he pondered the questions. "I'm sorry but exactly what are you planning to do with this car seat?"_

"Is that it? All you wanted to know was how mom is?" Bonnie asked.

"No."Wade faltered a bit before asking what he really wanted to know. "Is Uncle Rhett still staying there with her?"

"Yes. And he's not staying in a separate room either if you want to know the truth."

Damn. Wade cursed his mother's weak resolve when it came to his stepfather.

"So, they're back together now?" Wade knew he sounded spiteful and wanted to take his words, or at least his tone, back as soon as they left his mouth. He had a hard time remembering the Rhett was Bonnie's father.

"I don't think so. I mean, that guy Richard calls all the time and they haven't said anything confirming that they're no longer separated but they're crazy in love with each other and it's easy to see. Although I haven't heard any high pitched voices coming out of their room yet – but give it time. I kind of think it's romantic."

Wade looked at Beau and rolled his eyes.

"How's everyone else doing?" he asked.

"Good. Hey, Ella told me that you're going to meet your grandparents. Any particular reason you're doing this now?"

"No. I guess they thought it was time to finally meet.", he lied. His Uncle Henry disclosed the information about Rhett and his removal from West Point in secrecy. Wade knew about it before it was brought to Rhett's attention even. The idea that they could divorce and maintain ownership of both business was his. I was the only solution he could see working. Henry agreed and presented it to Rhett. As far as Wade knew, none of this was communicated to his mother. The three men agreed to keep her out of the loop unless it was completely necessary to inform her. Sharing information with Bonnie would be like advertising it on a Facebook live video.

"I thought they lived in Nantucket. Is that a long drive from the city ?"

"No, they live on Long Island. It's only about two hours away", Wade corrected her. "In fact it's where we're headed right now."

"We're ? Is Aimee with you? No wonder she hasn't called me back."

"No, it's …. It's Beau."

Beau felt the need to say something, anything to her. Yet, the ability to make his thoughts form into words seemed to be a monumental task. "Hey, Bonnie" was all that he could muster.

"Beau. It's good to hear your voice. I hope you're doing well in New York.", she said softly.

"I am."

"I'm glad."

Then there was silence. For that brief minute when no one spoke so much was said between them.

 _I love you. I need you. I miss you. I want you._

"Well, I should go, Wade. I just pulled up to the stable and I can already see my instructor waving me over. Have fun visiting your grandparents and don't let them talk shit about mama either."

Wade and Beau both laughed.

"This is coming from the girl who refers to her as the Tyrant?" Wade teased.

"Yes." Bonnie stated matter-of-factly. "But she's OUR Tyrant, Wade."

STW

Wade turned off the ignition to the car. Neither Wade nor Beau moved to get out and instead stared blankly at the picturesque estate before them. They had passed the rest of the drive in silence. Only the sound of the radio punctuated the tenacity of the situation. Once they had crossed over to Long Island they both became nervous.

"You ready for this?" Beau asked. His right hand was poised on the door handle.

Wade took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Not really."

STW

Both Wade and Beau rose slightly from their chairs as their grandmother excused herself from the table to go and locate an old photo album. "Such gentleman", she said endearingly.

As soon as they entered the foyer of the house, the boys were smothered by their grandmother. Madeline Hamilton had reluctantly followed her husband's lead in excluding their grandchildren from their lives. She didn't agree of his treatment of Scarlett or his refusal to acknowledge the only thing they had left of their son: Wade. She was able to maintain a regular correspondence with her daughter up until her death but it wasn't enough to allow her to establish a proper relationship with Beau. And now, before her stood two grown men who were essentially strangers.

They were both obviously Hamiltons. Both had the strong features prominently showcased in Hamilton men with little inflections here and there of Wilkes and O'Hara. Beau's blonde hair and Wade's chiseled cheekbones and jawline gave evidence of their low country heritage that had muddled into their upper-class, blue blood lineage.

She noticed the little things in them that reminded her of her own children. It was subtle. A half smirk, a slump of the shoulders, a small facial expression. Wade's smile was pure Charles and she was sure he didn't even know it.

As they ate, she also watched her husband. She paid attention to his jaw, to the small noddle that appeared when he was stressed. He hadn't wanted the boys to come. He said they wanted something, that their motives were suspicious. Madeline didn't care what their reasons were. She just wanted to see them and she'd kill Charles if he ruined it for her.

Charles was happy to let her do most of the talking. He gave her slight smiles and nodded when appropriate while she regaled the young men with story after story about their parents as children. But he wasn't fooled. These boys wanted something.

He considered the two young men before him. Beau had surely turned out disappointing. He had none on the polish and refinement expected of a Hamilton. He spoke with a Georgian drawl and talked about inane issues. His casual dress and demeanor was both unimpressive and embarrassing. Wade, on the other hand, was a wonder.

He was intelligent, refined, almost elegant even. He was well-read, top of his class, spoke two languages. He a brilliant career in law ahead of him and was engaged to a woman from one of the best families on the upper east coast. Perhaps he had been too hasty in dismissing the progeny of his son and the teenaged tramp.

Charles was intrigued by this young man.

"Beauregard, why don't you help your grandmother find the album. Allow Wade and me the chance to get to know one another."

Wade felt a cold chill run down his spine as Beau followed suit after his grandmother. He did not want to be left alone with his grandfather.

"So, Wade," Charles asked relaxing back into his chair at the head of the table. "Why are you really here? I assume this has something to do with your stepfather. Tell me, am I wrong?"

"No, sir. You're not wrong. I came to ask you for any assistance you may be able to provide in clearing my stepfather's name. I have reason to believe that false allegations will be made against his character that could destroy his name and his business. "

"Such as", Charles asked.

"Such as the reason he was expelled from West Point. He was asked to leave the school after he assaulted another cadet. Rhett says that he only reacted because he witnessed the cadet physically abuse a woman. However, I fear that the reasons behind his attack on the cadet will never be brought to light as there were no charges filed against the girl's attacker. Therefore, I believe the angle of the situation that will most likely pursued is one that focuses on race; that the cadet was… is.. black and the girl, his girlfriend, is white. They will say Rhett attacked him because of his disgust of interracial relationships. Hence, this will provide the prosecutors in the case against my mother with evidence that my grandmother was forced to name my mother and my aunts as her beneficiaries in her will. They'll say that Rhett influenced Mammy because he is a racist. Now, my stepfather is many things, but a racist he is not. The files West Point has about the incident will be able to prove this. They will contain all the details; not just the basic demographics that are accessible to the public. What I need is your help getting those files."

Charles drank the remaining few sips from his wine glass and gave a little laugh. "I heard you were studying to be a lawyer, Wade. Surely you should know that my hands are tied."

Wade straightened his shoulders back and set his jaw in a firm line. "Yes, sir. I am studying law. And legally, I know FERPA and its guidelines on student records hinders this situation. But I am also aware that there are few things in life that cannot be, shall we say, overcome, with the right amount of money and by having the right friends in high places. I'm no idiot, Grandfather. I know what wheels to grease to get to the top and I know you do as well. Excuse my bluntness, but I'm prepared to settle this misunderstanding by any means necessary."

Charles nodded appreciatively. Wade was trying to pay him off. He couldn't have been any prouder of his grandson than he was in this moment.

"This will be news to Henry. He prides himself on being an honest attorney and has cast you as the golden son who is following in his footsteps."

"With all due respect to Uncle Henry, all honesty ever got him was a paltry little law office in inner city Atlanta. He looks at this situation in one dimension. That's not how I see it, Sir."

Charles rose from his seat and beckoned Wade to follow him. " Join me in my office. I have a proposition for you."

STW

The office was stylish and had the old world charm that Rhett's lacked. Rhett's looked stagey and manufactured. "This", Wade thought, "This is much more my style."

Wade sank into a plush chair and felt himself relax in the comfort the room gave. He could see himself living a life like this, ensconced in what this "yankee-land" had to offer. The thought made him feel disloyal to his mother and he immediately shook himself from the fantasy.

Charles passed him a glass of scotch. Wade sipped the single malt and savored its smoky flavor.

"This is good. Thank you, Grandfather. A very sweet finish. Perfect." He said while looking at the liquor in the glass.

"You know your whiskey, son. Cigar?"

"Thank you, Grandfather."

Wade selected a Dominican and passed it under his nose and inhaled. He bit the tip off and puffed continuously as his grandfather lit the other end.

Charles took the seat opposite Wade and lit his own cigar.

"Wade, I believe I can help you. I'm sure I can help you access the records you need."

Charles swirled the whiskey in his glass and took a sip. " I'm prepared to do anything I can to help your mother and your stepfather."

Wade eyes him suspiciously. "Thank you, Grandfather. How, may I ask, repay you for your kindness?"

Charles' eyes sparkled. "I'm very impressed with you, Wade. You're different than your father– and that's a good thing. Charles was always too sensitive, very much like Henry. But you- you've got the tenacity and brashness that he lacked. You also have class and wit, and a fierce ambition that reminds me of myself at your age. You're a testament to the Hamilton name, son."

"Thank you, Sir."

"Which is exactly why I would like to make you my sole heir."

"Sir?"

"I'd leave you everything when I die." He waved his hand to gesture to his surroundings. "All my money, my property, my stocks, my holdings, even my position in society. You'd have everything.

You belong in New York with me. I can do so much for you, Wade. I'll introduce you to all the right people, the right PAC groups, I can give you the world you seek."

"That's very generous of you, Grandfather."

Charles smiled and inwardly cursed himself for not taking custody of Wade as an infant. He believed that If he were raised in this environment from infancy, there was no telling what he could have accomplished by now.

It never occurred to him that Wade was the way he was precisely because he was raised away from this environment.

"All I ask is that you distance yourself from the less than favorable aspects of your family in Georgia."

Charles registered the furrow of Wade's brow.

"It's not as if I'm asking for the moon, son. You're already half-way there. You've already moved to New York, you've already selected a good girl from the right family. Wade, don't you see? This is your chance. You cannot allow bottom-feeders to pull you down any longer."

Wade gulped down the whiskey in his glass and watched as the firelight reflected in the crystal. He knew he was speaking about his mother. The less than favorable aspect of his family….

"Correct me if I'm wrong, Grandfather. You're saying that you will help my mother and stepfather if I agree to renounce my family in Georgia and become your legitimate heir?"

Charles raised his glass to Wade in acknowledgement." That's one way to put it, yes."

"What about Beau?" he asked.

"What about him?"

"Shouldn't he be included in your decision of naming a successor?"

Charles blew out the smoke from his cigar. "Wade, you're not stupid. Don't pretend to not observe Beau's inadequacies, they're as clear as day. He's just not in the same class as us and you know it. He's common – a mere laborer. He's a Wilkes, not a Hamilton. He belongs in this world as much as you belong in his. It's you, Wade. You are a Hamilton. You were born one."

He could see Wade's trepidation in deciding. Unfortunately, the boy's one true weakness was that he loved his mother. Convincing him to relinquish his ties to her would be difficult. Charles changed his tactic.

"Your mother is a fine woman. She raised you to be a great man, and for that I am truly grateful. But she can only give you so much. Wade, you know you don't want a life in Georgia. If you did, you'd be lapping up the table scraps from Henry, not in New York, not here talking to me. You were meant for more, Wade. What I'm offering is what your father would want for you. Honor his wishes, Wade. Allow me to give this to you."

Wade cast his eyes downward. He thought about Bonnie's words, about "their" Tyrant, their crazy dysfunctional family. He also thought about the father he never got a chance to know and the truth of his grandfather's words. He was right. Wade's dreams and aspirations were always much bigger than Georgia.

His Aunt Melly had always said that he was more Hamilton than O' Hara. Could he just turn his back on his mother? Even if it was to her benefit?

"You drive a hard bargain, Grandfather. May I have some time to consider it ?"


End file.
